Tales from Grimwood
by Thefoxmage
Summary: The continuing adventures of Lincoln Loud at Grimwood's Finishing School. WIth new students, new teachers (in the future) and one of his little sisters coming to the school, odds are there will never be a dull moment in Lincoln's life. Rated T for future content.
1. Chapter 1

_AN: And here it is, the sequal to Lincoln Loud and the Ghoul School. Here's hoping I can write this one as well as I did the original. Before I start though, I need to give a few special thanks and explain a few things. First, a special thanks to Mstcano for giving me the idea to make this series an episodic one (I will elaborate in a moment), as well as another idea I will be using in the next chapter or two. Second, to Javimagine, who had noted me a few suggestions for the series, one of which being used right here in the first chapter. And third, I would like to thank certain guests for their recommendations for future chapters as well. I will, of course, credit and thank them again when said ideas get used, but here's a pre-emptive thanks for right here, right now._

_Next, a quick explanation of how I'm gonna be writing the story. As I said earlier, it's going to be more episodic, like the show. As a result, time is going to be rather flexible. Unless it is required with regard to plot specific events that need to happen in a certain order, there won't really be much of a timeline. If I need it to be a certain time for a story, it will be that time. If I want to throw in a holiday episode, boom, holiday episode. In addition, I also intend to include chapters starring Zanya, the sisters and crew at Royal Woods, and the Calloway Cadets as ideas come for each of them, either from me or from fans of the story. This leads me to the last thing I wanted to say: if you have any suggestions for chapters for the story, let me know in the review section or by notes. If I like the idea and think I can incorperate it into the story, I will try to do so, and give credit and thanks for it. While I don't have a specific end for this series in mind, I do have a main over arcing plot in mind, as well as character arcs for most of the new characters set up. Odds are, I will probably just keep going with chapters until I finish the main story and character arcs, and then run out of ideas. We shall see as time goes by._

_Well, that's enough out of me. Enjoy the story and may good fortune shine on you until we meet again._

* * *

A new beginning

It had been a few months since Sigmund Lesrec's invasion of Grimwood's School, and the wounds left by the hunter had finally healed. The damage to the building had been fully repaired, even the tunnel in the basement. Any injuries that the girls and the Louds had suffered had long recovered, and the mental and emotional scars left from the attack were healing nicely as well. Miss Grimwood hadn't reduced her security measures since the incident; far from it. She actually put more magical traps on the grounds, in the basement and even a few hidden alarms in the tunnel before it had been filled in. She was less willing to take chances than she was before. She did, however, relax the rules about going outside, so the students could enjoy nice days without Miss Grimwood or Mr Van Ghoul watching them. That morning, snow was gently falling to the ground, adding to the light blanket that already covered the ground. Gazing out of one of the second floor windows, Sibella smiled as she looked out at the pristine winterland outside. It was so beautiful, she could have just watched it all day. However, that wasn't really an option today. Something exciting was happening that day; they would be welcoming a few new students into the school. The vampiress turned away from the window, looking toward her roommate, Phantasma, who was brushing her hair in front of the vanity mirror. Technically, they shared it, but as Sibella was a vampire (and therefore had no reflection), she never really used it. She quietly left their room, not wishing to disturb her friend. Out in the hall, she noticed her fellow classmates were already all set for the newcomers, for the most part. Winnie had a new ribbon around her neck, Goskui's scales were shinier than usual, and Tanis was nudging Milly through the hall (as the martian was planning to simply sit this one out). "Good morning." Sibella greeted them cheerfully.

"Good morning, Sibella." Tanis chirped in reply.

"Morning, earth vampire…" Milly grumbled, feeling somewhat irritated at being pushed along.

"Do you know if Lincoln is awake yet?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm betting he isn't." The little mummy said. "It is the weekend, after all."

"Hmmm. Someone should wake him. I'm sure he wouldn't want to miss the new students." The vampiress commented with a slight, knowing smirk. By someone, she meant herself, of course. Tanis nodded as she continued to move her martian friend along. The daughter of Dracula chuckled lightly before she made her way toward Lincoln's room, passing some enchanted brooms sweeping up the dust, but leaving the cobwebs. Just the way they all liked it. After a minute or two of walking, she finally arrived at the door to her human lover's room. She gently knocked on the door first, just in case he was awake and getting changed. "Lincoln? Are you awake?" There was no response. She put her ear to the door and heard his soft snoozing inside. She sighed with a smile and gently turned the doorknob. The door opened easily.

Lincoln's room at the school had changed quite a bit from when he first got there. He had put up some more posters of his favorite things, left his life sized Bun Bun in the corner right by his bed, and his laptop set up on a little folding desk right by his dresser. The young man in question was curled up on his large, cushiony comforter, sleeping with the biggest smile on his face. Sibella blushed a bit as she looked at him, thinking it was the sweetest thing she's seen in a while. It's a pity she had to wake him. She quietly strolled over beside his bed, leaned over and tenderly kissed him on the lips. Within a few seconds of the kiss, his eyes slowly opened, gazing blearily at her. "Tee hee. Morning, sleepyhead."

"Good morning, beautiful." He replied with a chuckle, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Am I...late for class?"

"Oh no. However, today is the day we meet our new classmates." The moment she said that, the boy sat bolt upright in his bed.

"Whoa! That's today?" He asked, almost frantically.

"Yes, Lincoln." She replied, the white haired son responded by leaping from his bed and rushing over to his dresser in his orange pjs. "There's no need to rush though. It'll still be about an hour before they arrive." She added just as he started tossing his clothes from the drawers, looking for his best outfit.

"Oh…" Lincoln said, blushing a bit as he looked at all of his things all over the room, the vampiress giggling once more.

"Really excited, are we?" She asked him, ruffling his hair as he tried to clean up his mess.

"Heh heh. Yeah. Not just because we may meet new friends, but because my sister may be joining us as well." He told her, smiling broadly.

"Oh yes. You did say Lucy was interested in enrolling in Grimwood's...but I thought she had to wait until the end of the mortal school year."

"Me too, but she texted me a week or two back, saying to expect her. Not sure how she pulled it off; she was pretty cryptic with her message. Heh. Typical Lucy."

"Well, it would be lovely having her around." Sibella said, helping Lincoln pick up his scattered clothing. "Though if she can still do that appearing trick, it may make it tricky to find private kissing places." The two of them laughed lightly, Lincoln's face going red again. It only took a few minutes to clean up, the lavender ghoul girl leaving the human boy to get ready after. As soon as she was gone, Lincoln turned to the fourth wall.

"Hey there. As you just heard, our school is expecting some new arrivals. One of which is possibly my younger sister, Lucy." He told the viewers as he took the time to find some of his better clothes, setting them on his bed. "So, it's a really exciting time for all of us. I can only hope the other new students will be friendly."

* * *

About an hour later, all of the students of Grimwood were down in the entry hall; each and every one of them looking their best. Even the sour looking Milly was in her best space suit. Along with them were Miss Grimwood, Vincent Van Ghoul, Shaggy, Scooby, Scrappy, Matches, and the octopus butler. The middle aged headmistress was just as excited as her students, smiling brightly at them all. "I know you are all as eager as I am to meet our newest students, my darlings..." She said to them. "...and excited to make friends with them. But do make sure to be respectful of them at the same time. Some of them may be rather shy, after all. And, of course, show them all that old Grimwood hospitality and manners."

"Yes, Miss Grimwood." The students all replied together.

"Good, Good." The mystical teacher said with a smile. It was at that moment a knock came to the door. "That should be them." With a wave of her hand, the front door opened, and in stepped five monster teens/children. The most noticeable was a tall, burly minotaur boy with short, curved horns. His fur was a gray like color, his eyes a fiery red. He was wearing a forest green tank top and black shorts, in spite of the cold weather outside. He had some bandages on his leg. Standing beside him was a pale girl with dark gray hair done up in pigtails and a grayish white shirt. She looked almost human, except for the large, glossy black spider body connected to her front of the both of them was a fairly tall teen boy with light, pale blue skin and jet black hair done in almost a pompadour. He was wearing a royal purple sport coat and matching pants, with a crest in the shape of a skull, with an I in one eye socket, an M in the other eye socket, and with elongated canine teeth. He had an aura of confidence about him as he gave the girls a small smile. On the other side of the spectrum was a small skeleton boy who looked like he was no bigger than Tanis, who was peeking out from behind one of the thick legs of the minotaur. He was wearing a black school boy uniform with a tie that looked like it was made of snakeskin, and a brown wig of false hair that hung down to the back of his neck. His skull and bones were shining white, as if they were polished regularly. And finally, a teen girl with long, black hair that stretched down to her hips. She was stunningly beautiful, with long eyelashes, bronzed skin, and possessing an hourglass figure. She was wearing a small yellow crop top and a small skirt covering a small portion of her snake lower half. Her serpent body was the color of clay on the upper side, and sandy yellow underneath. "Hello, and welcome to Grimwood's Finishing School. I am Miss Grimwood, Headmistress of this fine school."

"Good day to you, Miss Grimwood." The half boy, half bull replied with a thick scottish accent, everyone but the serpent girl giving her a polite hello as well.

"A pleasure to meet you all. Would you be so kind as to introduce yourselves, and perhaps share a little bit about yourselves?"

"Gladly. I'll be going first." The minotaur lad cleared his throat and turned to the students assembled. Lincoln was toward the back of the group, so he couldn't quite see him in the crowd. "My name is Silas McRowds, hailing from bonnie ol' Scotland. As ye can tell…" He flexed one of his mighty arms, showing off his muscles. "...I'mma mighty one. Unmatched in strength back home."

"That is impressive." Winnie commented with a smirk, while Tanis and Gila looked amazed. The bull boy smiled appreciatively, enjoying the attention.

"Good afternoon, everyone." The vampire teen boy said as he stepped forward, with poise and dignity. "I am Ignatius Morvis."

"Morvis?" Sibella inquired in great surprise. "As in the Morvis vampire family?" The young man grinned a bit as he looked to Sibella.

"Indeed, Miss Dracula." He replied with a nod of his head and a wink in her direction that made Sibella blush ever so slightly. "An old, respected family, though not quite as famed or accomplished as your own. In truth, I almost didn't end up coming to Grimwood's. My father wanted to send me to an all vampires private school, but I fought long and hard to come here and, as you can see, my persistence paid off." The white haired boy wondered for a moment why he had fought so hard to get enrolled into Grimwood's, but kept the question to himself for now.

"Bonjour, fellow monsters." The lamia spoke up next, giving a warm smile to the Grimwood girls. "I am Avalina Laverns. Born in Tours, France, but my family moved here to the States to be closer to family."

"How are you liking it here so far?" Elsa inquired.

"Oh, we are liking it just fine...except for the sheer amount of vermin around here." Avalina replied, casting a sideways, hateful look toward Vincent Van Ghoul. A look that was just subtle enough not to be noticed by most. Milly had spotted her look, but she kind of had to agree with her. Only one other noticed, but she didn't say anything...for now. "Anyway, my mother wanted to make sure I got the finest education here, and she had heard a great many things about Grimwood's School for Girls...though it seems some things have changed."

"Yeah." Tanis replied with a nod and a smile. "Miss Grimwood had recently started to allow boys to enroll."

"A fine idea." The snake girl said in an approving tone.

"As well as humans." Suki piped up. Avalina flinched when she heard that, even more so when she spotted Lincoln standing beside the kaiju girl.

"I….I see. How progressive." She said with a very uncomfortable smile and a bit of a twitch in her eye.

"Hello everyone. My name is Wendalyn." The arachnotaur girl introduced herself, waving to them all.

"Wendalyn? I heard that name before…" Lincoln said quietly, taking a moment to think where her name sounded familiar. It hit him after a few seconds thought. "Oh right. Clyde, Jordan and Zanya told me about her. He told me that she would be coming to the school."

"My mother and I have been moving a lot over the last few years, always needing to find a new place to live. As you can imagine, between that and...certain obvious issues, it's been kinda tough for me to get a proper education. But then, Mom got wind of Grimwood's, and we trekked across the States to get here; and let me tell you, it was quite the adventure."

"You were in Royal Woods a few months back, weren't you?" The white haired boy said with a smile, getting her attention.

"That's right. How did you know that?"

"My friends, Clyde, Girl Jordan and Zanya, told me about how they met you."

"Oh! Hehehe. I remember them. They were lots of fun to hang around with...and tickle. They were lots of fun to tickle." Wendy said with a giggle.

"I think we're going to get along juuuuust fine." Phantasma commented with a big grin. All eyes then turned to the little skeleton, who was still hiding behind Silas. This only made him want to hide even more.

"You alright there, lad?" The minotaur boy asked, looking down behind himself.

"...I'm fine, thanks…" The child made of bone responded quietly.

"Then why not introduce yourself, little guy?" Wendalyn suggested, giving him a warm, encouraging smile.

"...I'm Mark….and there's nothing to really say about me…I'm nothing special, really..." The little skeleton said. Hearing that made most of the assembled students look sadly at him.

"Now young man, that isn't true." Miss Grimwood said with a soft frown, stepped forward and kneeling close to the insecure bone boy. "I'm sure there is plenty about you that is special, Mark Sk-"

"Please!" Mark suddenly said louder than usual, surprising the mystical head mistress. "Miss Grimwood….don't speak my surname…please."

"Hmmm? Whatever for, Mark?"

"I have my reasons, ma'am...reasons I'd rather not say out loud…" The middle aged witch looked at the skull headed child, who looked pleadingly at her.

"As you wish, Mark...but I don't want to hear you talking like that again, ok?" Mark gently nodded to her. "Very good. Now then, perhaps there is something you are especially good at, or a hobby you enjoy?"

"...I learned a lot about potions and alchemy from my mother...I'm...alright at that...and I do enjoy it..."

"Do you now?" Miss Grimwood said with a smile. "Bet you can't wait for potions class then. Is there anything else you'd like to share?" The pint sized skeleton shook his head to her. "I see. Well, as you wish, Mark." She gently patted him on the skull before rising and looking to the five new students. "It is lovely meeting all of you."

"Er...Miss Grimwood. Are you sure that's all of the new arrivals?" The white haired boy inquired, his eyes scanning the small group in front of them.

"Hmmm. I think so...let me check." Abigail responded, pulling a piece of paper from her pocket. "Mmmm...It seems like it." She added, a slight mischievous smirk on her face as Lincoln's face fell.

"Boo." A soft voice said from right behind him. He jumped and gasped, clutching his heart as he turned around. Standing right behind him, a big grin on her face, was the little gothic Loud, Lucy.

"Lucy!" Her brother exclaimed, smiling and pulling her into a big hug.

"Hello, big brother." She responded, hugging him as well. "Good to see you and the girls from Grimwood again."

"Isn't that just the sweetest?" Tanis asked her friends, giggling.

"You not just whistling dixie, sister." Winnie answered with a smirk.

"Fangtastic to see you again, Lucy." Sibella said.

"Ah yes. Miss Lucy Loud." Miss Grimwood finally said with a chuckle. "Were you surprised, Lincoln?"

"Haha. Yeah. You and Lucy got me good." He said, putting his little witch sister down.

"For the benefit of those who do not know me here…" Lucy said, looking mostly at the new arrivals. "My name is Lucy Loud, and I am a witch."

"You certainly look the part." Wendalyn told her with a small smile.

"Thank you. In addition to studying magic, I am deeply interested in poetry and the macabre." Lucy continued. "I had planned to have a poem ready for when I arrived, in fact, but I was so excited, I couldn't concentrate. Anyway, I hope to be able to hone my magical skills, like my big brother has." She turned to look at Lincoln with a somewhat proud smile, her older brother chuckling a bit, rubbing the back of his head.

"Wonderful." Miss Grimwood said, in as high spirits as most of the others. "It is marvelous to have you all here. I am sure most of you are tired from your trip here, so if you are ready, you will be escorted to your rooms. Otherwise, you may explore the school or get to know your classmates a little better. If you have any questions or concerns, Mr Van Ghoul and I would be more than happy to help you as best we can. Our doors are always open." With that said, Miss Grimwood bid her students a warm farewell as she and Vincent headed back to their offices. The moment they had departed, the students (old and new) split up into groups to speak to one another: Elsa and Winnie moved over to Silas, while Ignatius and Lucy immediately moved closer to Sibella. Tanis and Gila went to talk to the ever shy Mark, and Avalina was engaged in conversation by Gosuki. Finally, Wendy skittered her way over to Lincoln and Phantasma, while Milly simply moved away from everyone.

"I'm glad you were able to make it to Grimwood alright." Lincoln told the spider girl. "Sounded like quite a trip to make on foot...er...so to speak."

"It was." Wendalyn confirmed with a nod. "Especially travelling only by dark of night, to avoid scaring people. Then we needed to find a place to stay, take care of the paperwork, the whole nine yards. But here I am."

"Well, it's great to meet you, Wendalyn." The spirited ghost said, shaking her hand. "I'm Phantasma Phantom, and this is my boyfriend, Lincoln Loud."

"A pleasure." The one son said politely.

"Likewise." She replied. "And please, feel free to call me Wendy."

"And you can call me Phanty, and call him Linky." Phantasma said, giggling as Lincoln blushes softly.

"Hehehe. So, you two are a couple?" The ghostly gal and the human boy nodded.

"Well, we're part of a bigger relationship, actually." Phanty amended. "Lincoln is dating me, Sibella and a girl he knows called Ronnie Anne." The arachnotaur blinked in surprise, looking between the two. "It was my idea, and we're all ok with it." She added cheerfully.

"Really? So…" She started, a playful grin on her face. "...you'd be ok with me dating him too?" Lincoln's face turned a little pink as he looked at her dumbstruck, while Phanty didn't even flinch.

"We'd need to talk it over with Sibella and Ronnie, but-"

"I'm kidding." Wendalyn said with a giggle. "I don't even know him...though he is kinda cute."

"Hehehe. That he is. That he is."

"I must say, it is a true honor to finally meet you in person, Miss Dracula." Ignatius said, gently kissing the back of the vampiress' hand.

"It is nice to meet you as well, Mr Morvis." Sibella replied politely, a faint blush on her cheeks.

"Please, call me Ignatius."

"And call me Sibella." The vampiric young man smiled to her, glancing over toward where Lincoln was standing. A brief look of confusion appeared on his face.

"A mortal? Here?"

"Yes." Sibella replied simply with a nod. "Miss Grimwood thought it would help human/monster relations to start allowing humans to learn along with us, as well as letting boys enroll as well."

"I see. A bold move. How has that been working out for her?"

"Very well. His name is Lincoln Loud, and he is without a doubt the sweetest boy I've met yet." She told him, smiling lovingly at Lincoln as he chatted it up with Wendalyn and Phanty. "...and he is the boy I love." Upon hearing that, Ignatius felt a horrible twinge and grimaced a bit. Fortunately, the daughter of Dracula hadn't seen this.

"I see...he must be quite a human if he has won your heart." He said, maintaining his composure on the outside. On the inside, however, he was glaring daggers at the one son; and he wasn't the only one. Avalina was also giving Lincoln a rather dirty look while Gosuki was rambling on. Meanwhile, Lucy was standing silently beside Sibella, looking up at Ignatius. Shy was one thing that the little gothic Loud was not, but one look at this stunningly handsome vampire...it left her spellbound. Her cheeks turned red and she was utterly speechless. She just stood there as the two vampires chatted, not noticing she was even there at first, until the undead teen boy glanced over in her direction. "Hmmm? Oh, hello there, young witch." He greeted her, causing her to blush even deeper. Sibella blinked and looked down to see Lucy right beside her.

"Oh! Hello, Lucy." Dracula's daughter said with a smile.

"...I'm-I'm Loud Lucy…." The eight year old goth muttered, barely above a whisper.

"Somehow, I doubt it." Ignatius jested with a soft laugh, Sibella giggling a little as well. This made Lucy even more uncharacteristically bashful.

"I mean...Lucy Loud…" She corrected herself after a few seconds.

"Ah. That makes a little more sense." He said, before he bowed his head lightly. "Regardless, it is a pleasure to meet you." Her whole face turned red, her legs getting a little weak. To her, it was like all of her dreams were coming true all at once. She was accepted into Grimwood's school, where she could learn true magic just like her brother, she had the prospect of really turning into a vampire after college, and now, she meets this devilishly handsome vampire. It was almost enough to make her faint; a fact Sibella clued into rather quick.

"Lucy? Are you ok?"

"...phenomenal." She replied simply, not taking her eyes off of Ignatius Morvis.

"Hello, Mark." Tanis said as she and Gila approached the little skeleton, a smile on the little mummy's face. He shrank back a bit, looking as if he was kind of hunched over.

"H...Hello…" He replied with a stutter.

"I'm Tanis."

"And I'm Gila. Pleased to meet you." The Creature's daughter said politely.

"...Pleased to meet you too…" Mark responded meekly and quietly.

"There's no need to be so shy, Mark." Tanis said, gently patting his arm. "We're all really friendly here."

"Well, Milly can be a little crass, but once you get to know her, she's alright." Gila amended with a soft chuckle. The little boy of bone slowly looked at the two of them, both of them smiling sweetly at him, which slowly brought a tiny smile onto his skull.

"There we go. That's a good start." The youngest of the original Grimwood girls said. "Would you like to meet the others now?"

"Er….perhaps later…" The skeletal lad replied nervously, his eye sockets looking at the many groups of much taller monsters and humans. "S-shouldn't overdo it…"

"Aww...at least let me introduce you to Lincoln." Before Mark could say anything, Tanis hurried off to where her honorary big brother was, leaving her aquatic friend with him.

"You don't need to worry." Gila told him as she noticed his bony legs shaking. "Lincoln is really nice."

"I-Is he?" The fish girl nodded to him.

"When I first met him, I was terrified of him too." She admitted, a hand on his back. "But after he learned this, he went out of his way to make sure he didn't make me uncomfortable. Not only that, but he helped me fight my fear of humans."

"...he sounds nice." It was around this time Tanis returned, holding Lincoln's hand as she escorted him over to the fearful skeleton.

"Big brother, this is Mark." Tanis said, though she knew it was somewhat unnecessary. "Mark, my brother, Lincoln Loud."

"Pleased to meet you." The white haired human said, crouching a bit.

"...he's your brother? For real?" Mark inquired, looking between the two in confusion.

"Well, not really…" Tanis confessed, before hugging Lincoln's arm. "But he's as good as my big brother." The middle Loud blushed lightly, chuckling as he hugged the little mummy in return. Gila smiled at the two of them, her own cheeks turning a little red as she gave the human boy a small embrace from the other side. Seeing the affection the three of them were sharing helped put Mark a little more at ease, the skeleton slowly shuffling forward and holding out a bony hand to shake Lincoln's. The one son gently shook his hand, carefully as to not possibly remove a hand or an arm.

"Wow. You aren't kidding." Winnie said, hanging off of Silas' outstretched arm while feeling his solid muscles. "You are RIPPED."

"Thank ye, Miss Winnie." The minotaur lad said with a big grin. "I take pride in me strength."

"We can tell." Elsa commented, chuckling a little as she saw her friend swinging on his arm. She glanced downward and took note of the bandages on his leg. "Hmmm? What's that?" She asked in concern. "Were you injured recently?"

"Hmmm? Oh, that? Nah, happened a few months back." He said dismissively. "It's more or less a scar at this point, but me Mom dinnae want to take any chances."

"A scar? Cool. Can I see?" The young werewolf inquired. Elsa shot her a bit of a warning look, but Silas didn't seem at all bothered. He knelt down and moved the wrappings a bit to show them the scar that looked like it had been caused by a gunshot wound.

"A human hunter took a shot at me." He explained as the two ghoul girls looked at it. "Got me good, I admit, but I gave the donut the slip in the swamps." Winnie sighed as she shook her head.

"Some guys will just shoot at anything that moves, won't they?"

"Aye. Yer not wrong, lass." Silas responded, snorting a bit in anger as he remembered that moment when Sigmund nearly killed him. However, he wasn't about to admit that to them. "...damned careless humans, but I digress. Left a scar worth talking about, and I still have to kinda limp about, but nothing I can't deal with. I'm tough."

"...Avalina? Is something wrong? Am I boring you?" Gosuki inquired, interrupting the story she had been telling about her venture into culinary arts last week.

"Hmmm?" She turned to the young kaiju, momentarily turning away from Lincoln as he chatted with Mark, Tanis and Gila. "Sorry...what were you saying, Gosuki?" Suki twisted her own head around to see what the lamia had been staring at.

"Lincoln?" She inquired, turning back to Avalina. "Why were you staring at him?"

"What? No. I wasn't staring at him." The human/snake hybrid lied. "I...just have a habit of staring off into space."

"Oh. Sorry. It's not a sensitive topic, is it?"

"No. Just kinda inconvenient." Avalina said, waving off her apology. "But enough about that. You were telling me about that souffle?"

"Oh! Right. Well, I had put a few crushed fire beetles into the mix to add a little heat before I put it in the oven. That, I admit, was a pretty big mistake."

"Why so? Fire beetles are delicious, if a little strong." The serpentine girl said. "I use them on my steaks all the time."

"Yes, AFTER their cooked, I bet." Suki guessed, to which Avalina nodded. "But, as I learned, adding fire beetle to uncooked food makes it incredibly difficult to cook it, since the beetle's natural heat resistance becomes part of the dish. So after about twenty minutes, I check the souffle, only to notice it was still very raw. I checked on it again forty minutes later, than an hour, then two hours. By three hours and finding the mixture barely warm, I just gave up and tossed the mixture."

"Well, you live, you learn, oui?" Gosuki nodded in agreement, while Avalina was still watching Lincoln from the corner of her eye. Internally, she was disgusted by his very presence. However, if Miss Grimwood really was accepting HUMANS into the school, then there was little she could do about it...for right now. She'll think of something.

* * *

After each of the new students took the opportunity to chat with some of the current students (at least those they cared to speak to), the new arrivals started to head toward their new rooms to unpack and begin getting settled (minus Lucy, who wanted to see the library first, and Ignatius, who went off on his own way). "Thank you for helping me with my luggage, Silas." Avalina said with a soft smile, the minotaur boy beside her dragging his own steamer chest behind him with ease and carrying a few bags over his shoulder.

"Think nothing of it, lass. Tis hardly any effort fer me." He said. "So, what do you think of of the school so far?"

"A little early to judge, but I do think it is a lovely place." The lamia said with a soft smile, which quickly turned into a bitter frown. "I just wish I knew sooner that HUMANS were allowed here…"

"What's wrong with humans?" Wendalyn inquired from behind her, a single duffle bag on her spider back.

"What's right with them is the easier question to answer." She responded distastefully.

"I'm gonna have ta side with Ava on this one." Silas admitted, looking somewhat serious himself. "I cannae say I'm especially fond of humans either. Not that I don't have darned good reasons, mind."

"...what reasons are those?" Mark asked meekly.

"Well, apart from generally treating me and me Mom poorly, they sent a hunter ta try and kill me." He explained, once more snorting in anger. "We never did anything to them. We even tried to keep outta their way...but that was never good enough."

"I admit I've run into a few humans like that…" Wendalyn said, a little upset by this conversation. "...but not all humans are."

"Aye, that is true enough, Wendalyn. But enough of them are like that." Silas replied. "And so long as that is the case, I dinnae think me and the human race will ever get along."

"Amen, brother." Avalina stated in agreement.

"Well, what did humans ever do to you?" Wendalyn asked, frowning at the lamia. However, the serpentine teen had arrived at her room.

"This is where I stop. Again, thank you so much." She said to Silas as she took her bags from him with her tail, bid them all farewell and closed the door behind her. Avalina privately hoped she wouldn't end up with a human roommate, but it appeared she lucked out; her roommate was Winnie. The arachnotaur frowned at the door, shaking her head as they group continued on.

"So, where are you headed, lass?" The minotaur boy asked, looking at Wendalyn.

"Oh, I'm actually down in the basement." The pale spider girl replied cheerfully. "I just wanted to hang out with you guys a little longer before I went to go unpack."

"Heh. Well, if that's what you want to do, I'm nae gonna argue." Silas said with a chuckle. The three of them walked along until Mark came across his room, bidding a quiet goodbye to the others and went inside, where he found that Ignatius was his roommate. The minotaur and arachnotaur continue to chat about this and that for a few minutes before they came to his room. "Suppose I'll be seeing you later then, Wendalyn."

"Yep. See you, Silas." She replied with a wave and smile, skittering off toward the stairs leading back down to the main floor. The young minotaur opened the door and looked around on the inside. He noticed a bunch of posters on the wall: some of Ace Savvy, a few of different reality shows, a few video game poster, and a few MuscleFish posters. These got his attention as he grinned. "MuscleFish? Aw yeah! Good to know another fan lives here." He started to unpack his things and arranging some of the furniture on his side of the room when the door started to open. He turned his head to see who was coming in and, to his chagrin, in walked Lincoln. The white haired boy looked toward the minotaur and smiled a bit.

"Hello Silas." He said politely. "I'm Lincoln. I guess we're going to be roommates." He held a hand out to the half bull boy, who just looked back at him for a moment before sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"The gods are taunting me…" Silas muttered to himself. The look on his face was enough to wipe the smile off of the human boy's face.

"Is...something wrong?"

"...aye." Silas told him, looking rather upset. "Look, lad...I'm gonna level with ya. I don't like humans. Not one bit." He explained bluntly to the somewhat stunned Lincoln. "And I'd as soon eat a cheeseburger as share a room with one…" And with that, he stormed out of the room past Lincoln and out into the hall, the white haired boy just staring at the door as it slammed shut. On one hand, he should have expected that not all the new students would be cool with humans. On the other hand, to end up roommates with someone who didn't like humans...what were the odds? The one son sighed as he walked over to his own bed and grabbed his phone, dialing up his mother.

"Hello?" Rita replied on the other side of the phone.

"Hi Mom. It's Lincoln."

"Oh, hello dear. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, Mom. How about you? Everything alright there?"

"Junior twisted her ankle during practice, but you know how she is. Doesn't let that slow her down for a moment. Otherwise, everything is just grand."

"Good to hear. Lucy just arrived at Grimwood's not too long ago." He informed her, laying back on his bed.

"We know. Lucy texted us as soon as she arrived, but thank you so much for telling us. Have you had a chance to meet the new students?"

"A few of them." He replied. "I met Wendalyn, an arachnotaur. She was pretty nice. My friends had told me about her, though, so I kinda knew what to expect."

"Your friends had met her before?"

"Yeah. Kind of a long story. I'm surprised Zanya hasn't told anyone...which, speaking of telling people, someone might want to tell Leni before she next visits Grimwood's that Wendalyn is half spider."

"I'll be sure to tell her when she gets home."

"Thanks. Anyway, I also got to meet a skeleton named Mark. He was nice enough, but seemed really shy and nervous. He didn't really want to talk to me or anyone else, but with a little coaxing from Tanis and Gila, he talked to me a little bit. And then, I just met my new roommate, Silas, a minotaur."

"Is that so? How are you getting along?"

"...we're not." He admitted sadly. "Right from when I stepped into the room, he told me he didn't like humans and left the room in a huff."

"Oh dear...well, Gila and Milly were the same when you first met them, and you eventually became friends with them, right?" Lincoln nodded his head.

"Yeah...well, Milly would say we're more...on speaking terms than friends, but let's not nitpick."

"My point remains. Give him some time, and I'm sure he'll come around."

"I hope so…" Lincoln muttered to himself. "Anyway, I didn't really get to talk much with the other new students. Avalina, who is half snake and half lady...not sure what kind of monster that is. Gonna have to do some research...anyway, she seemed in a big hurry to get to her room by the time I had a chance to speak with her, and Ignatius, a vampire boy, spent almost the whole time speaking with Sibella and Lucy."

"Well, I'm sure you'll get your chance soon enough, Lincoln." His mother told him in an encouraging voice. "And don't get discouraged about Silas. Just be you and everything will turn out alright."

"Thanks, Mom. Hope I didn't interrupt something important when I called."

* * *

Over in the dentist's office where Rita Loud worked, it looked like it had been hit by a floss tornado, or perhaps a floss spewing spider. Minty wax string was all over the place, particularly over the ceiling. Rita's legs were wrapped up as she hung upside down and chatted with her son. "Oh no. We're just...hanging around the office." She said with a slight giggle. Over in the far corner, her boss looked like he had been caught in a spider web, the office receptionist cutting him down with a look of disbelief on her face, while the dentist himself looked rather embarrassed.

"...how did this happen again?"

* * *

"At any rate, it looks like something is about to go down here, so I should probably get going. Take care of yourself, dear, and your sister."

"Always, Mom. You too. Love you. Bye."

"Love you too, Lincoln. Bye." Before she hung up, Lincoln could hear a crashing sound coming from the phone.

"Huh...whatever went down must have been big." He commented as he set his phone down beside his laptop. He then turned toward the fourth wall. "Six new students, one of which one of my own little sisters. Something tells me life around here is going to get more 'interesting' than before. But whatever happens, it can't be as crazy as what happened a few months back with Sigmund…" He commented with a chuckle. His smirk faded pretty quickly as he continued to look at the viewers. "...why are you looking at me like that?"


	2. Chapter 2: Live from Grimwood

_AN: Special thanks to mtsocano for the idea for this chapter._

* * *

Live from Grimwood

Lazy evenings. Sometimes, they are a welcome diversion from the hectic day. However, sometimes, they can be the dullest. Unfortunately for Lincoln Loud, this evening was very much the latter. All his homework was done, he didn't have much interest in his computer games, he had read all of his comics to death, and he had even finished reading through his monster history textbook. He sighed as he laid on his bed, looking over at the sheet that separated his half of the room to Silas'. The minotaur had attempted to convince Miss Grimwood to get him a new roommate, or a room all to himself, but to no avail. Instead, he decided to put up a cloth barrier between the human boy and himself, and ignore him as best he could. Yes, Lincoln had to pass his vision every time he left the room, but it was only for a second or two. He could reasonably ignore that. Lincoln was considering strolling down to the library when he heard his phone vibrate. He glanced over to his phone to see he had gotten a message from Clyde. He smiled, picking up the phone to see what his friend sent.

Clyde: Hey buddy. How goes it?

Lincoln: Hey Clyde. Kind of a dull night, actually. You?

Clyde: Alright. My Dads and I are getting ready to watch a new antique auction reality show.

Clyde: Care to watch it with us?

Lincoln: Sorry Clyde, but there's no cable here. Or TV at all, actually.

Clyde: No fooling? No tv or internet?

Lincoln: Yeah. Not usually a problem, but today…

Clyde: Sorry to hear that, Linc.

Lincoln: It's cool, partner. There's usually something else to do around Grimwood's.

Clyde: How are your friends doing, btw? How are Sibella and Phanty?

Lincoln: They're doing great. Some new students joined recently.

Clyde: Awesome. I'd love to see Grimwood's sometime.

Lincoln: Maybe you can come visit over the weekend?

Clyde: Wish I could. My dads and I are gonna be visiting my grandma this weekend.

The white haired boy sighed a bit, pretty disappointed upon hearing. Then, he had an idea.

Lincoln: How about a video tour? I could film myself going through the school, with Miss Grimwood's permission, and upload it so you and our other friends can see Grimwood's.

Clyde: Hey...that's an idea. If you can get her permission, go for it, buddy.

Lincoln smiled brightly as he hopped out of bed and sped out of his room. Minutes later, he found himself in front of Miss Grimwood's office. The door was open, so he could see her at her desk, pouring over some applications strewed all over her desk. She had an indecisive, somewhat annoyed look on her face as she glanced as each page. The one son was wondering if this was a bad time, but before he could go away and try again later, she looked up and gave him a warm smile. "Why, hello Mr Loud. Something on your mind?"

"Er..hello, Miss Grimwood. I had something to ask you, but I can see your busy…"

"Nonsense, Lincoln. My door is always open to students." She said, gesturing him to enter, which the young man did. "What was it you wished to ask?"

"My friend has been wanting to see Grimwood's for himself for a while, but hasn't been able to find an opportunity to visit personally. So I thought; perhaps I could go on a video tour of the school tomorrow. Show him and our other friends around the school in a virtual manner. But I wanted to ask your permission first, before I did anything." The white haired boy explained to her. The mystical headmistress smile faded into a look of silent contemplation. The room went absolutely quiet for nearly a minute as she considered the issue, before she finally spoke.

"I have no personal objection to the idea. However, I suspect there will be students who may not approve of being filmed…"

"I would ask before I film around others, of course." He replied. "Or edit them out if they don't want to be in the video."

"Hehe. I shouldn't be surprised that you already thought of that, Lincoln. But how do you plan to get the video to them?"

"I could send it via my phone, or take a trip to the nearby library if it's too large, where they have wifi. I'd need to go there to edit the video anyway." The one son explained to her.

"Hmmm...very well, Lincoln. Provided you respect your fellow students' wishes and not film them if they don't wish it, and stay out of places where privacy is expected (bedrooms, restrooms, and the like), you have my permission." Lincoln smiled lightly to the motherly witch.

"Thank you, Miss Grimwood."

"And before you ask, I would not mind appearing in your video, but I will probably be here most of tomorrow. If you happen to catch me in the halls though, don't worry about it." The one son nodded, thanked her once more, and waved to her as he departed to plan his tour.

The white haired boy was standing in the entrance hall the next afternoon, fiddling about with his phone as he prepared it to start recording. As he was getting prepped, Gosuki had come plodding down the stairs, spotting the human child and smiling. "Hello, Lincoln."

"Hey Suki. What's up?"

"Not much. I was just thinking of just heading to the common room until our class tonight. You?" The young kaiju inquired.

"I was just about to make a video, giving a little tour of Grimwood's for my friends." He explained as he got his phone set up.

"Really? Can I help?" Gosuki asked eagerly, her eyes sparkling a bit. "I've been experimenting with videography this week."

"Hmmm. Sure, if you'd like to." He replied. "I wouldn't mind a little help." The pink kaiju giggled with joy as she hurried down the stairs.

"Here. I'll work the camera so you can lead the tour."

"Sure, but would you like to be in the movie first?"

"Oh! Yes! Yes I would!" The giddy reptilian girl replied. Her joyous enthusiasm made Lincoln chuckle a little before he turned the camera on his phone on.

"Hello everyone. Welcome to Grimwood's Finishing School. I'm Lincoln Loud and I will be your tour guide today. Joining me on our tour will be the talented Gosuki, the gal behind the camera and assistant editor. Say hi, Suki." He said, pressing the button on his camera to turn it from selfie camera to the front camera.

"Hi everyone!" Suki said cheerfully, waving to the potential audience before taking hold of Lincoln's phone.

"Thank you, Suki. Well, I guess the best place to start will be the place all new students see first; the entry hall." The white haired boy gestured around at the room they currently resided, his pink scaled friend slowly turning to film the entire room from where she stood. "Looks pretty spooky, right?"

"Thank do take pride in our school's appearance." Gosuki commented with a giggle. The moment she returned to her original position, the camera was suddenly in Phantasma's face.

"Hiya guys. What are you two up to?" The smiling spirit asked curiously.

"Hi Phanty. We're just doing a little tour of the school for my friends back home." Lincoln explained, chuckling a bit to her.

"Yeah. We're using his phone to record everything." Gosuki added.

"Oh really? Can I be in your movie?" The giggly ghost inquired, still looking at the camera on the smartphone.

"Of course." The middle Loud replied, before he realized what she meant. "Whoa, hold on, Phanty! You promised…"

"I did, Linky. And I'm not gonna haunt your video. Really." She replied, turning to face her human boyfriend, unable to hide her mischievous smirk. Lincoln looked at her skeptically with a raised eyebrow.

"I can see right through you, Phanty…" He told her, which made the ghost girl burst into giggles.

"Ok. Ok. I really won't. Promise." She said, holding one hand up, and the other hand where Lincoln could see it. The young man seemed convinced, giving her a smile once more.

"Thank you, Phanty." He responded, standing on his tiptoes to kiss her on the cheek, making her blush softly and giggle even more.

"You two are just adorable." Gosuki snickered playfully, the camera pointed right at them. The one son's cheeks turned a little pink.

"Well, I say he's adorable all by himself." The playful specter interjected before she flew away laughing, leaving Lincoln with a face all red.

"Uh...ahem. Right...um…" He stammered, regaining his composure. "Let's move on, shall we?" He motions for Suki to follow him down the hall leading to the library. "A lot of the halls around here look pretty similar, so it can be pretty easy to get lost here for a first timer. And, oddly enough, these halls seem like they get longer when you're running through them…"

"You noticed that too?" The young kaiju asked in surprise. "I thought it was just me."

"Oh no. And how many tables with vases are there even in Grimwood's? I never really thought about it again until now…" Lincoln paused to consider it before chuckling. "Kinda funny, actually."

"Unless you're the one running through the hall with someplace to be." Gosuki retorted with a soft laugh.

"Too right there, Suki." After a minute or two more walking, the two find themselves in the library, where Elsa and Lucy were quietly reading; Lucy perusing a book of spells, and Elsa indulging in a science fiction novel. He motions for the kaiju cameraperson to wait a moment as he moved forward to speak with them. "Hey...sorry to bother you both…"

"Not at all, Lincoln. What's up?" The reanimated young lady inquired with a friendly smile, lowering her book. Lucy didn't say anything, but still gave her brother a small wave.

"I was just wondering if you two minded being in a little video we're making. I'm doing a tour of the school for my friends with Suki's help." The human boy explained to them.

"Hmmm. Well, it's fine by me." Elsa replied with a shrug.

"Lincoln...could I send the video to my friends too?" Lucy inquired, setting her book down.

"Sure." He responded. He had a feeling Lucy would have asked that, and he didn't mind at all. After all, he was friends with Haiku too. His answer made his little sister smile. He motioned for Suki to come in, then he said, in a somewhat quiet voice. "This is the library, usually a quiet place to read or study. Miss Grimwood keeps all text books we need for our studies, as well as a wide variety of spell books, fiction books, reference material, and everything else you could ever want from a library."

"Including an impressive poetry section." Lucy interjected.

"Miss Grimwood is usually pretty chill about borrowing books too." Elsa said as she looked toward the camera. "So long as you don't take them off school property and don't damage them purposely, you can borrow any book you like on the shelves."

"Has that ever happened?" Lincoln questioned curiously. "Simon's antics notwithstanding."

"Not on purpose." Elsa replied after a moment's thought. "But she did have a blob student who often messed up the books by accident until she learned to control her ooziness." The one son smiled lightly as he moved further into the library. "Oh! Hold on, Lincoln. You don't want to go over there.."

"Oh? Why no-" He was about to ask, but he got his answer when he turned the corner. Standing right in the middle of the path between two bookshelves was Matches, looking for a place to sleep. The little dragon spotted the white haired boy and turned red, steam billowing from his mouth. Lincoln gulped when he saw the angry dragon. "oh...would you look at the time? Gotta run!" The white haired boy said hastily before he bolts from the library.

"Matches...why do you insist on messing with Lincoln? You can't still be angry at him..." Suki asked the little dragon with a slight frown. Matches mumbled an answer that most couldn't understand, but she could, as he returned to normal.

"Nah." He replied, shaking his head. "He's just fun to scare. I'm still hearing new squeaks of fright from him." He added with a mischievous snicker. "It's hilarious."

"...fair enough, but you really should lay off him…" The pink kaiju said with a disapproving shake of her head before she went to go look for the human boy. She had left the camera running during that conversation, but to anyone else, it would just sound like the mini drake was babbling. Lincoln was standing just outside the library, trying to calm himself down by the time Gosuki caught back up with him. Once his heart rate returned to normal, he continued on with the tour. They stopped by the kitchen (which was oddly empty) and looked in on some of the empty classrooms, briefly describing the classes the happened within them. By the time they returned to the entry hall, Vincent Van Ghoul was descending the stairs, looking through a thick, leather bound tome with a pensive expression.

"Good afternoon, Mr Van Ghoul." The Loud Warlock greeted him as he and Suki waited for him to get off the stairs.

"Ah. Good afternoon Mr Loud, Miss Suki." The seasoned spellcaster responded, closing his book and looking to them. "Working on a project of some kind, children?"

"Just a little video for Lincoln's friends, Mr Van Ghoul." The reptilian girl responded. "Which, speaking of, do you have any problem with being in the video, sir?"

"None at all, Miss Suki." He responded with a small smile. "If I didn't wish to appear in the video…" He snapped his fingers, his image fading from the phone recording, much to the surprise of the young man and kaiju. "...I wouldn't." He chuckled a bit and started to walk away, his image slowly returning to the video.

"...awesome…" Was all Lincoln could say as he witnessed what took place.

"That's a really handy trick. I hope he teaches us that." Suki said in wonder. With the way clear, the two made their way to the second floor.

"On the second floor is where all the students' rooms are, as well as the restrooms and the common room." The one son explained as the two of them started down the hall to the right. "I won't be able to show you any of the rooms other than the common room. Don't want to intrude on the privacy of my friends and fellow students after all." He continued as the two strolled through the school, passing by closed bedroom doors until they reached the common room. "And here, we have the common room. A place for students to get together and relax after classes. They can read, listen to the radio, play games together, or just hang out and chat."

"We can do that pretty much anywhere, but it's much cozier in here." Gosuki added as she panned the phone's camera around the room.

'Can't argue with that…' Lincoln thought to himself as he remembered how he and Phanty found the common room empty one time. They started out curling up together on one of the easy chairs with a good book that evening, but after a fashion, it had turned into cuddling and kissing, their book laying forgotten on the floor. The one son felt his cheeks turn rather red with a dreamy sort of smile on his face as he remembered that evening, not realizing that the camera was facing him again. He remained oblivious until he heard his kaiju cameragal giggle, snapping him out of his musing. "...we...uh...are gonna edit that out, right?"

"Whatever you say, chief." Gosuki replied as the two of them departed the room for relaxation and made their way to the gym tower.

"Up here is where the school gym is, though gym classes are sometimes held outside as well. We'll get to the grounds soon enough." Lincoln explained as they ascended the winding stairs.

"Well, at least we get a little extra exercise going to and leaving gym class this way." The pink kaiju interjected.

"How true that is." When the human boy and Godzilla's little girl finally arrived, they found Winnie and Tanis already there; the werewolf girl working on the pull chains on the wall, and Tanis doing some yoga. "Hey girls."

"Hi Lincoln." Tanis replied cheerfully, stretching forward from a sitting position to touch her toes.

"Hey Linc. Come up for a little workout?" Winnie inquired, putting everything she had into her own exercises.

"Actually, we were making a video…" He started to say, but then he remembered he had passed on arm day the other day; and if he missed too many days, Lynn would be able to tell, and she would give him all kinds of grief for it. "...but I suppose there's no harm in a quick workout. A couple minutes of running on the ol' dreadmill will do it." He added, making his way over to a treadmill that looked like it was designed by a dungeon keeper. "Don't let the name and look fool you. It's just a scary looking treadmill." Lincoln said to the camera as he stepped onto the machine. "If you want, Suki, you can take a little break."

"Thanks, but I think I'll go around and get a little more footage." She turned to look to their friends, who continued their own exercises. "You two ok with being in the video?"

"Fine by me." The fur bearing young lady replied.

"Same here." Tanis answered. The reptilian girl smiled as she started to film around in the gym tower, while Lincoln started up the treadmill and started to jog on it.

"Starting kinda light there, are we?" Winnie inquired with a slightly teasing tone.

"Just getting warmed up." Lincoln replied, chuckling a bit. "I've had enough charlie horses in my life to know I don't want another one." The two of them laughed a little at that comment before Lincoln turned up the speed on the treadmill, though only a little bit. Meanwhile, Suki was pointing the phone out the window, directed at Old Calloway. The old academy was roped off and locked up tighter than Fort Knox since Sigmund's invasion, and the grounds were showing signs of its abandonment. Even through the snow, there were patches of tall, dead grass. As she was filming, she felt something brush past her tail. She blinked and turned her head to see what had happened, but saw nothing there. She just shrugged it off and proceeded with recording. Winnie, on the other hand, could just barely notice a faint distortion moving through the gym. She was about to say something, but she noticed the hushing motion the invisible being was making. The werewolf girl tilted her head a bit, but got a hint as to what was about to transpire when she saw the distortion moving over beside Lincoln.

During his run on the machine, it suddenly turned off, causing the human lad to bump into the console in front of him. It didn't hurt, but he was rather surprised. "Huh? How did that happen?" He scratched his head, but figured it was just a glitch. He turned the machine back on and resumed his exercises. After a few seconds, the treadmill started to speed up ever so slightly. At first, Lincoln didn't notice, because he could easily meet the pace. However, he was soon struggling to keep up, the belt on the treadmill going faster and faster. It wasn't long before the white haired boy was flung off the machine, only to be caught by...thin air? "What the…?"

"Hehehe. Sorry if I scared you, Lincoln." Came the soft, familiar voice of Sibella, the vampiress soon appear from nowhere. She was holding him in her arms, a sly smirk on her face.

"Sibella?" He asked in surprise, before he kinda smirked in response. "Heh...brat." The vampiress giggled and playfully rubbed noses with him before setting him on his feet. Winnie, Tanis and Suki were all giggling at the sight, the kaiju girl having recorded the whole thing.

"That's a keeper." She said, getting a confused look from the vampiress and a deep blush from Lincoln.

"What do you mean?"

"You're getting a part on Linc's video." Winnie said, laughing softly. The one son proceeded to explain to her what he and Gosuki were doing.

"Oh! I didn't realize it was a bad time...sorry, Lincoln."

"No harm done, Sibella." He told her before giving her a tender kiss on the cheek. This brought a smile to the face of Dracula's daughter as Lincoln continued on to describe the amenities of the school gym tower. It wasn't long before the middle Loud was bidding farewell to his friends and girlfriend, and he and Suki began their trek down to the basement. "Like any other basement…" The one son explained as the two of them walked down the stairs. "...Grimwood's basement is kind of dark and even creepier (though it's not so bad if you're used to it). However, it can also be even more of a maze than upstairs. But down here is where the art and music rooms reside, as well as the science and alchemy lab."

"As well as Tanis and Wendalyn's room." Gosuki added as the two stepped onto the landing at the bottom of the stairs. The basement, initially, looked like a fairly normal one; with boxes stored in a corner, an old washer and dryer, a floor drain, a few old pieces of furniture covered in tarps, and an old, rusted over cauldron. However, there were three ways out of the basement room, though Lincoln knew which way was the fastest to get to where he wanted to go. The room was only dimly lit with a few magic candles, enchanted to ignite whenever some entered the room. It was near impossible to see anything up toward the ceiling and very difficult to see around the room. Lincoln conjured a little light sphere in his hand so they could see better and spotted a thin strand of silk hanging a little in front of the way they needed to go.

"Speaking of Wendalyn…" Lincoln said with a light shake of his head and a bit of a grin. "Looks like she's fishing for playmates again." He carefully moved around the thread, looking back at it. "But I'm not falling for that trap." He said to no one in particular, not noticing a pair of arms reaching down toward him from above.

"Uh...Lincoln…" The kaiju cameragal tried to warn him, trying not to laugh. The white haired human was a little too slow to get her hint, and he ended up getting grabbed and pulled up toward the ceiling, the sphere falling from his hand. Gosuki grabbed the light orb and held it up so she could see just as Lincoln started laughing. Sure enough, the arachnotaur girl had a firm grip on the young man with two spider legs and was tickling his ribs.

"Hehehe. They always watch the thread." Wendy said through a few chortles. "And never look up."

"Hahahahahahahahah ok! Ok! You win hahahahahahaha! You got mehehehehe!" Lincoln cried out through his laughter, squirming in her grim.

"Hehehe. It's not about winning, Lincoln. Just about the fun." She responded, though after a few more seconds of making the white haired boy laugh, she gently set him down on the ground. "Phanty was right. You do have a precious laugh." She told him. "Second cutest I've heard yet."

"Hehehehe...thanks. Wait. Second?" Lincoln blinked as he turned to her with a curious expression. "Who's first?"

"Your friend Clyde." She replied before she lifted herself back up into the darkness above. The one son just stood there for a moment as he processed that, but then snapped out of his musings long enough to ask Wendy if she minded being in the video tour (to which she said she was delighted). With her permission obtained, the duo moved on through the basement halls. Both Lincoln and Gosuki knew this place pretty well, so their chances of getting lost were slim. It didn't hurt that they could hear music being played up ahead. Beautiful violin music to be precise; coming from the music room. The pair followed the sound to the open door of the classroom and peeked inside. Ignatius was standing before Gila and Mark, playing the violin; and masterfully at that. The creature's daughter was absolutely entranced, and Mark looked like he was enjoying the concert as well. Not wishing to disturb them, the two were contemplating coming back later. However, the vampire had noticed them and smiled softly.

"Ah. Mr Loud. Miss Suki. Come on in." He said, pausing in his playing. He wasn't especially fond of Lincoln, but at the same time, decided remaining civil with the human was necessary. The one son was about to politely decline, but Gosuki had already went inside and taken a seat by Mark. The human lad just shrugged and moved over beside the creature's daughter. She blushed furiously when he sat beside her, though no one really noticed once Ignatius started playing again. While the concert went on, the young kaiju took the opportunity to film the rest of the music class before returning the focus onto Ignatius. Around five minutes later, he finished his performance as his audience applauded him.

"Bravo, Ignatius!" Gosuki cheered.

"That was absolutely beautiful." Gila commented, wiping a tear from her eye.

"That was fantastic." Lincoln complimented him while he clapped.

"Thank you." The well to do vampire said with a deep bow to them.

"I do hope he lets us keep that music in the video…" Suki said.

"Video?"

"We're in the middle of making a video tour for my friends and Lucy's friends back home, to show them Grimwood's school." The one son explained to him. "We didn't expect anyone to be down in the music room though. You guys don't mind being in the video, do you?"

"I don't." Gila replied. While she was kinda skittish around groups of humans, she wasn't so much concerned about being seen by them.

"...I guess…" Mark said meekly. Ignatius tapped his chin for a moment as he considered the request.

"Why not?" He said with a devil may care shrug. "A little musical culture would no doubt do them some good." Lincoln frowned softly, but didn't say anything. He didn't want to cause trouble over a slight that may not have been meant as a slight. Instead, he thanked them all before they all milled out of the room.

"As you guys could probably tell, that was the music room. It's not really part of the standard curriculum; more an extracurricular class held every once in a while, but it's open to all students during our free time." Lincoln described as the two of them proceeded through the basement halls in the opposite direction of everyone else. "A lot like the art room."

"Which is a pity in my opinion." Suki voiced her opinion on the matter as they moved along. "But maybe Miss Grimwood can find a good art teacher sometime soon so we could have more frequent art classes." Lincoln nodded in agreement, as he was rather fond of art class back at Royal Woods Elementary.

"And speaking of the art classroom...here we are." The one son declared as they entered the spacious, yet cobweb filled art studio. Lining the wall directly across from the doorway was Suki's gallery dedicated to her friends, with a few new pieces; the little statue of Lincoln, A glass figure of Tanis, and a marionette of Wendalyn in half spider form. "It's here where students can draw, paint or create, clear of the usual hustle and bustle of the school. It's also where Gosuki typically works her artistic magic."

"Hehehe. Oh, I'm not all that good." The reptilian girl repled bashfully. Lincoln chuckles and gestures to her collection of pieces nearby.

"Your gallery says otherwise." Suki could hardly stop giggling as she panned the camera across the many fruits of her artistic labors since she had come to Grimwood's. "Where do you usually get your supplies, Gosuki?"

"Apart from paint, ink and paper, I usually buy it with my own allowance." The kaiju girl explained. "As you can imagine, it was a little awkward going to town to get what I needed at first."

"I can imagine." Lincoln said with a nod. He knew the nearby town pretty well by this point, as he frequently visited it to earn some extra pocket money, visit the library to use its wifi, or escort one of the younger girls to the stores. At worst, they tolerated and ignored most of the Grimwood students, and at best they treated them no different than the rest of their neighbors. But even then, how often do you see a little prehistoric monster roaming about? Once they were done in the art studio, they moved on to the final classroom on the tour: the science and alchemy lab. As the two were so closely connected, the two classrooms were made into one large laboratory, with a moving wall in place to protect the expensive electrical and scientific equipment from being damaged from the odd potion or chemical explosion. On one side of the classroom was a series of large, heavy wooden tables, where potions and compounds were created, as well as the ingredients, chemicals, acids, etc were located. On the other side, it looked like Dr Frankenstein's laboratory, complete with an old time computer to monitor data. A wooden slab that was an examination table took up a chunk of space near a backup generator for the school, where Elsa typically went if she needed to be recharged.

Today, however, Milly was using the table to do a little work of her own. After speaking to Lisa back at the open house, Milly was inspired to really get into rc piloting. In fact, she has been working on her own aerial combat drone for some time now; and she felt it was coming along nicely. It could have used some martian materials, like the regenerating synthetic material similar to earth plastic, but for something she built with less than ideal materials (in her eyes), she was rather proud of it. She just needed to program it and the controller and she would be able to take it for a test flight. So focused was she on her work that she didn't notice as Lincoln and Gosuki entered the room, nor did they notice her, with the size of the room. The little martian only took note of them when Lincoln spoke. "And here, we have the school's alchemy and science lab. Many a potion and invention have been created in these four walls…"

"...and just as many have exploded." Gosuki joked, the two of them laughing a little. M-149 rolled her eyes a bit, but said nothing, opting to focus on her work instead of on them.

"Due to alchemy being the combination of science and magic, and potions class requiring a lot of the same tools as chemistry class, the two classrooms were combined into one. On this side is where all the alchemy, potions, and chemistry goes on. We also perform simple scientific experiments. For standard science class and the more complex stuff, we head over yonder." Gosuki turns the camera phone over to the other half of the classroom.

"Oh! There's Milly." The young kaiju said with a smile as she spotted the little alien.

"Good day, Gosuki. Good day ear….Lincoln." Milly corrected herself, not turning to face them. She had been trying her best to be more friendly toward the human boy, as he had earned a certain amount of respect from her after the invasion of Sigmund Lesrec.

"Hello Milly. Doing well today?"

"Quite well, thank you. I am almost done with my drone." She answered, before looking at the phone in Suki's hand. "Why are you carrying his phone?"

"I'm helping him record a video tour of the school. Would you like to be in the video?" The reptilian cameragal inquired.

"I couldn't care one way or the other." M-149 answered bluntly. "But your government may, Lincoln."

"Huh? What does she mean, Lincoln?" The kaiju gal turned to look at her human friend.

"Well, it's rumored that the government covers up evidence of alien existence." The one son replied. "Though, since aliens do exist, it may not be a rumor." The mini martian simply shrugged, starting to program her drone. "Well, I guess we'll just take a chance. I mean, if we can send the videos directly, it won't be an issue." Gosuki nodded in reply. The two finished their brief tour of the lab, keeping the noise down so Milly wouldn't get disturbed, before they left and headed back upstairs to the entry hall. "I need to get my winter gear from my room before we head outside. I'll meet you back here in a little bit, Gosuki."

"Alright." Gosuki replied as she grabbed her hat and scarf from the coat rack by the front door. While she was a reptile, the cold didn't bother her much at all. Like her father, her scales protected her quite nicely. While she was waiting for Lincoln to return, the recording on pause, she spotted Avalina slithering toward her from the kitchen. She looked positively irked, dressed in a thick sweater and woolen cap, carrying a cup of hot chocolate.

"Curse this cold weather…" She grumbled.

"Everything alright, Avalina?"

"Yeah...it's just way too cold today." The lamia responded, shivering slightly. Gosuki tilted her head a little, a little confused. It wasn't that cold inside the school; a little cool in some rooms, but not as cold as outside. However, Avalina was simply extra sensitive to the cold. What was only kinda chilly to others was uncomfortably cold for her. She took a sip of hot cocoa to help warm herself up a bit when she noticed the phone. "Got yourself a cell phone, Suki? Good for you."

"Actually, it's Lincoln's." The kaiju girl explained. "We're making a video."

"Is that so?" The half snake woman asked in intrigue. "What kind of video? Are you looking for actors or extras?" She inquired eagerly.

"Lincoln is making video tour of the school for his friends and the friends of his sister." The kaiju girl explained to her. "Why? Do you wish to be part of it?" When Avalina heard what the movie was for, she openly balked, much to Suki's shock.

"N...no, but you may be able to get assistance from Phantasma or Tanis…" The lamia teen said in a somewhat cool tone. "If you'll excuse me…" She added, turning toward the stairs.

"Wait…" Gosuki called out, the serpentine girl stopping on the bottom stair. "...you seemed so up to the idea just a moment ago. Why do you…?"

"Sorry, Suki…" She interrupted her scaly friend, continuing to climb the stairs. "...but I have some homework I need to catch up on. I'll see you later." She lied, just as a way of getting away from the situation. Before the daughter of Godzilla could stop her, she was already on the second floor and leaving her sight, leaving Suki to wonder what all that was about. Ava was moving quickly through the hall, just in case her kaiju friend decided to pursue the issue, and her. So quick that she ended up bumping right into Lincoln.

"Oof! Oh, excuse me." The one son said politely. Avalina simply huffed in reply, leering at him as he moved past her and headed for the stairs. She had a look of contempt on her face as she glared at the back of his head, then his back, then down to his legs. Her eyes lingered on his legs for just a moment before he started down the stairs and she turned away, heading back to her room. "All set, Suki?" The human lad asked as he adjusted his hat. Gosuki didn't reply at first, looking up to where Avalina had left. Something wasn't really making much sense to her about that half snake gal. "Suki? What's up?"

"Huh? Oh...it's nothing." The pink scaled girl responded as she shook out of her contemplation, turning back to Lincoln. "I'm ready. Let's go." She decided she could figure out what was up with Ava later. Right now, she was having fun working on this video with Lincoln. "You know, when we're done with this, maybe we should send a video letter to the Calloway Cadets."

"Now there's a fine idea." The white haired Loud agreed with a smile. "I'm sure they would appreciate it." He opened the front door and the two of them stepped outside onto the front porch. The grounds were covered in a thin layer of snow, as was the frozen over moat. The snow was mostly undisturbed, except for a trail of large, footprints headed around the side of the house toward the garden. "And finally, here we have the grounds of Grimwood's school. As you can see, there's more than enough room for the students to play, study in the fresh air, or just relax and enjoy themselves. And this is just the front yard." Just then, the two heard a loud thump coming from the garden. Curious, the duo ran around to the side of the house to see what was going on. When they both leaned around the corner, they could see a large log flying through the air, landing with a thump beside the first one, close to a stack of firewood beside the house. The source of the airborne lumber was Silas, wearing a thin jacket and gloves, and a pair of jeans. He was picking up logs and hurling them closer to the wood pile, in preparation to turning them into firewood. "...yikes. He's even stronger than I thought."

"I wonder if he'd like to be in our video." Gosuki pondered out loud as the minotaur chucked another hunk of wood to the desired destination.

"I somehow doubt it." Lincoln replied nervously. "He told me he doesn't like humans...I don't think he'd want to appear on a video being made for humans to watch…"

"We won't know until we ask." She said as she stepped around the house and approached the mighty bull boy. "Hello Silas."

"Good afternoon, lass. Fine, brisk day, innit?" The minotaur boy asked with a grin.

"Kinda chilly at that, yes." The pink scaled kaiju replied with a sweet smile. "Busy?"

"Not really. Just helping Miss Grimwood fill up the wood pile while getting a touch of exercise. What's on yer mind?" He inquired as he picked up another fallen tree.

"Lincoln and I are making a video and we wanted to know if you minded being in it." She explained to him, trying to look as cute as possible. Silas's grin faded as he looked over to where Lincoln was, who gave him a nervous, awkward wave.

"What's it about, lass?" He asked suspiciously.

"He wanted to do a video tour so his friends and his sister's friends can see Grimwood's school for themselves."

"I don't think so, Gosuki." Silas answered, shaking his head. "Being gawked at by a bunch of humans dinnae appeal to me in the least…I've been bothered by them enough in me life..." Suki looked pretty disappointed by his answer.

"Well, alright, if you're sure." She replied. "Though I'm sure most humans that did bother you saw just how strong you were, they wouldn't be inclined to do so." The brawny minotaur paused in the act of picking up another log, looking at her.

"...ya think so?"

"I can't say for certain, but I know I don't want to mess with you, watching you throw logs like they were toothpicks."

"Heh. A fair point. Not something a lot of them can pull off...well, I suppose. Anything in particular ya need me to do?"

"No. Just keep doing what you're doing, unless you want to say something to their friends."

"Nay. Have nothing to say to them." Silas answered with a shake of his head. "But if ye didn't really need me ta do anything, then why were ye askin'?"

"Just a common courtesy. Lincoln didn't want to put someone in the video if they didn't want to be in it."

"I see...fair enough, I suppose." Silas said with a shrug. Gosuki thanked him and plodded her way back over to the one son, giving him the signal it was ok. Lincoln just nodded slowly and cleared his throat as he got ready to continue the tour, while Silas simply pretended they weren't there as he started splitting the logs with a chopping ax.

"Over here, we have the gardens. Usually, this garden would be covered with produce, herbs, and a few giant flytraps. In the winter, however, all that remain are the flytraps." He directed Suki to turn the camera toward the lethargic carnivorous plants, each donning giant earmuffs and scarves. "Winter, and after feeding time, are the only times I feel safe around these things."

"They can be pretty grabby." Gosuki commented as they walked past the plants. "Though they did keep their vines to themselves for a while when Miss Grimwood told them she would clip their vines if they grabbed any students again."

"Here's hoping they keep to that." Lincoln said with a slight shiver as he looked at the barely moving carnivorous plants. He directs Suki over to the hedge wall. "On the other side of this hedge, we have Old Calloway Academy, the military school that used to reside next door. It was closed down a few months back to make way for the larger New Calloway school a few miles up the highway." The white haired boy pointed with his thumb over his shoulder in the general direction of the new school. "The cadets are alright guys, with one exception. I haven't really met the new cadets yet, but someday, I'm sure we will." The two continue on to the back of the school, where the volleyball court lay unused. "And here's where the annual volleyball game between Grimwood and Calloway happens."

"Hehe. Good times." Suki commented, more to herself than Lincoln. "We usually play for fun too after the game too." Without much more to say, the two proceeded around the other side of the school, and finally back to the front door.

"And that concludes our tour of Grimwood's Finishing School." The one son declared, turning to face the phone camera. "We hope you enjoyed it and hope we can see you all again very soon. Until then, this is Lincoln Loud…"

"...and Gosuki…"

"...signing off." The two said together as she ended the recording. "Thank you, Suki."

"You're welcome, Lincoln. I had a lot of fun with that." The pink kaiju gal said with a big, toothy smile. "So, when are we going to edit it?"

"It'll have to wait until tomorrow, I think." The human boy said, looking at his watch. "It's getting a little late in the afternoon. By the time we get to the library, there probably won't be much time before we have to come back for dinner." Gosuki nodded, having had a feeling they wouldn't be able to take care of it that day. She handed him back his phone and headed back inside the school with him so they could warm back up.

The next day, Lincoln, Suki and Lucy were huddled around one of the computers in the town library, getting some odd looks from the other patrons in the building (if only because there was a young, dinosaur like monster at a computer). The three worked very quietly while editing the video; a few extraneous bits here, a little bit of the silent walk through the basement hall there. However, even after editing and compressing, the video was still much too large to send to his and Lucy's friends directly. That said, Lincoln had anticipated that, and he had a backup plan. If he couldn't send it, he'd post it on Viewtube. He rarely, if ever, got a lot of views on his videos (apart from those TWO videos, but after he deleted them, he preferred not to even think about them), so he was certain only his friends and Lucy's would see after telling them about it. So after Lincoln successfully got his video uploaded, and he and Lucy sent out a few texts, the trio returned to Grimwood's school. When they got back, they found a crowd consisting of Sibella, Phanty, Elsa, Tanis, Gila, Wendalyn and Winnie, all eagerly awaiting their return. Lincoln was kinda shocked to see all of them there in the entry hall. "Uh...hi everyone." He said.

"Hey there, Linc. How'd the video turn out?" Winnie inquired in reply.

"It turned out pretty well, I think." Gosuki answered with a smile.

"May we see it?" Tanis asked hopefully. The one son smiled lightly, realizing they all wanted to see the video. He nodded and motioned them all over as he pulled out his phone. After a few seconds of waiting for the app to load and letting the girls all huddle around him, he hit the play button.

"Awwww. So cute." Sibella commented as the part with Phantasma played, the vampiress grinning and ruffling Lincoln's hair, making her human boyfriend blush.

"If only I had thought to have my poetry notebook on me...I could have recited some poetry." Lucy somewhat lamented as they reached the library.

"I'd really like to hear some of your work sometime." Tanis commented, smiling at the young goth.

"Uh...is that an error right there? Mr Van Ghoul disappearing, I mean." Gila asked as the seasoned warlock vanished right before their eyes, only to reappear moments later.

"No. That was Mr Van Ghoul showing us a little of his skill." Lincoln explained. "...he is so cool."

"I quite agree." Lucy said with a small smile. "I look forward to his next spellcrafting class."

"Hahahahaha. Sibella really swept you off your feet on that one." Winnie teased as they watched the white haired Loud fall right into the invisible vampire's arms. "Even funnier the second time."

"Speaking of more fun the second time..." Wendalyn added, giggling as her ambush on Lincoln started playing.

"Aww...you got to play with Linky? You shoulda called me." Phanty said with a faux pout, which was ruined by her giggling.

"Next time. Promise."

"My goodness...that music is beautiful." Sibella commented, genuinely impressed by Ignatius' violin playing.

"Yeah…." Lucy said with a dreamy sort of sigh she usually reserved for Edwin or Rocky. This didn't really sit well with Lincoln, but he had a feeling (or rather hoped) that this was just a crush.

"I could listen to that all day…" Gila interjected, looking just as enchanted.

"Hey...something isn't right here…" Suki commented with a frown as they reached the science and alchemy lab, in which sections of the video seemed to be missing or altered, keeping M-149 out of the picture. Even her voice was cut out. "I didn't edit those parts. What's going on?" As if on cue, a message from Lisa popped up on his phone.

"My apologies, elder brother, but the government wishes to keep the actual existence of martians under wraps to the majority of the public, and as this video can be seen by the public, we were forced to alter it. Nothing personal. Mankind just isn't ready."

"Whoa...they're fast." Elsa said.

"...creepy fast." Lincoln added with a shudder. 'Well, Milly did warn me this could happen…'

"Well, that's annoying...it looks like we're talking to nothing…" Gosuki complained, though she realized there was nothing they could do about it.

"The grounds look just fang-tastic in the winter." Sibella said as the tour reached the area around the school outside.

"And Silas doesn't look half bad either." Winnie added with a smirk as they saw him hurling a few logs before starting to chop them. "Wonder if he's seeing someone…"

"I think you're a bit young for him." Elsa told her, patting her on the head.

"...you don't know that...he might just be big for his age…" The lycan girl grumbled, though she felt Elsa may be right.

"I wonder where Avalina is. I don't see her anywhere in the video." Gila commented.

"She told me she didn't want to be involved..." The daughter of Godzilla explained, frowning a little.

"Really? That's really strange..." Tanis said, looking up at the large reptilian girl. "Avalina told me once that she was super into acting. Even wants to be in television one day." Gosuki's frown only grew. The lamia's refusal made even less sense to her now. The only clue she had was how the lamia had reacted when she mentioned it was Lincoln making the video for his friends. What was her problem with Lincoln, she wondered. To her knowledge, the two never shared so much as a word, outside of polite salutations from the one son. She decided she would try getting to the bottom of this later herself. No sense upsetting Lincoln or the others about this while they in such good spirits right now.

"Well, government interference aside, I think it turned out pretty good." Lincoln said as the tour came to an end. "And it looks like our friends already commented." He scrolled down to read the comments. "...first...really?" He sighed and scrolled further. "Ah. There's Clyde. He says 'Wow. Grimwood's looks kind of creepy.'"

"Aww. That's so sweet of him to say." Phantasma said with a giggle. "The next one says 'Just has a nice, lived in look to me.'"

"That's from Liam. Hey, here's one from Haiku to you, Lucy." Lincoln turned to phone so Lucy could see better.

"'Lucy, you are truly living the dream.'" The eight year old goth smiled as she read that aloud. The next few messages were from a few users Lincoln didn't recognize, and a couple he did.

"Aww. You and the ghost gal are so cute together."

"I think he and the vampiress are cuter." Phantasma and Sibella couldn't help but burst into giggles reading that, while the one son softly blushed.

"I thought the moment between Lincoln and I was pretty cute." Wendalyn interjected, making him blush even more.

"Can't argue with that." Sibella replied, leaning in close to Lincoln and gently stroking his cheek.

"Hey Linc...did you know your video has a few bits missing from it?" That message had come from Zach. Lincoln wasn't shocked he caught this, but he was pretty surprised there was a reply to his comment.

"I am sure there is a legitimate reason for that." From a user who had one of the actors from the Men in Dark Suits movie series as his user image.

'Subtle…' Lincoln thought sarcastically.

"Heh. Wendy got you too, eh Lincoln?" Girl Jordan posted.

"OMG that place looks so creepy. I love it!"

"It's like a school turned haunted house."

"He's got a dinosaur running the camera. Automatic. Best. Thing. Ever."

"How'd he do that? Was that an editing trick or did he really disappear?"

"Fun vid, kid. Planning on making a series of it?"

"A series?" Lincoln said out loud. He hadn't really considered it before. After all, this was only intended to be a video tour for his friends. On the other hand, he did have fun making it, though what would he even do for such a show?

"A series? Say, that could be fun." Tanis commented as she read the message too.

"Yeah. We could all pitch in too. Well, those of us who would want to be a part of it." Gila suggested. "Phanty could play music."

"Yeah. And Gosuki could showcase her art." Phantasma piped up.

"And I could recite some of my poetry." Lucy said, her smile growing a little more. Lincoln was silent as he pondered this for several moments.

"Hmmm. Something to consider." Lincoln finally said. "We can all put our heads together to figure out how to do this later, if we all still want to do this." The girls all nodded as they all looked back to his phone to see if there were anymore comments to read.

* * *

_AN: Sorry it took so long to do this chapter. Hope you all enjoy it. Thinking of possibly including Lincoln and the Grimwood students doing a web show from the school. A kind of iCarly deal happening here and there. We'll see what happens with that. Also, the next chapter may take a little bit. Due to a recent event I was only recently made aware of, I'm doing something different with said chapter, instead of the one I initially planned (which won't hurt anything story wise thanks to there being no set timeline at the moment). All will be made clear (hopefully) soon. Thank you for your patience and have a good day._


	3. Chapter 3: His Favorite Phantom

_AN: Near the end of July, I had heard from mtsocano about the passing of Russi Taylor, the voice actress of Phantasma Phantom. He suggested it would be nice to do a Phanty centered chapter as a tribute to her, and I quite agree. So here we have a Phantasma story, with a couple references to other roles Russi Taylor was known for. Here's hoping you all enjoy the story._

RIP Russi Taylor

* * *

His Favorite Phantom

It was an overcast, and somewhat gloomy spring Sunday afternoon. The temperature was slightly warm, the buzzards were lurking about the rooftops, and Miss Grimwood's garden was growing nicely. Even the fly traps were bright eyed and bushy tailed (so to speak). To most of the students of Grimwood, this would be a glorious day. Not that they didn't appreciate sunny days, but they certainly liked dimmer days better. However, one girl wasn't enjoying it so much. Phantasma Phantom had just been drifting around the school looking uncharacteristically blue for the whole morning. She wasn't her usual, giggly, spirited self. She was quiet and sullen, but she had no idea why. She was just floating over her bed, doing nothing in particular by herself when she heard a knock at the door. "Come in…" She replied in a melancholy tone. The door creeped open and in came Lincoln. Usually, his smile would be enough to instantly brighten her day. Not today though. "Oh. Hello Lincoln…"

"Hi Phanty." Lincoln said to her with a smile and a wave. "Are you ready?"

"...ready for what?" She inquired, looking over at him. Lincoln's smile turned into a puzzled look.

"Have you forgotten, Phanty?" He asked her. The ghostly girl looked at him blankly for a moment. Then, her eyes widened and she slapped her forehead with a groan.

"Oh no...I forgot it was date day…" She said sadly. "...I'm sorry, Lincoln…"

"It's alright, Phantasma." The one son said, moving over beside his spectral girlfriend and giving her a gentle hug. She returned the embrace, but it wasn't with her usual energy. "...are you alright?" He asked, sensing something was amiss with her.

"...I don't know, Lincoln...I just feel really...down." She replied, floating down to her mattress. "I can't really explain it...Not sure if I'm even up for going out…" Her human boyfriend gave her a sympathetic look, still holding her close. He helped her out of bed, holding her in his arms, much to her surprise.

"Well, maybe a little change of scenery will help cheer you up." He suggested. "It couldn't hurt to try." Phantasma was quiet, looking quite uncertain. "How about this? We go out for a little bit and, if you're still not feeling it, I'll bring you right back. Ok?"

"...I guess." The phantom girl replied as Lincoln set her on her feet. This brought a small smile back to Lincoln's face as he offered her his arm. She gently takes it before he took the spirited lass to his room, where the teleportation orb lay. In a matter of seconds and in a flash of light, he and Phanty appeared in the living room of the Loud House...where his sisters were all laying in wait.

"...oh dang it...I forgot to account for this…" Lincoln gulped, bracing himself for the stage eight sister typhoon...but it never came. He slowly opened his eyes to see his sisters only taking pictures of the two of them. Much more subdued than he was used to.

"Like, smile for the camera." Leni coaxed them, getting a coy smile from Lincoln as he chuckled a little. Phanty, on the other hand, could only manage a very faint smile. Lori caught on to this, but mistook it for the usually giggly ghost being uncomfortable.

"Alright everyone. Ease up a bit. We got our pictures of the adorable couple; give them some room to be on their way." She instructed, gesturing her nine sisters to spread out (which they did). Lincoln took the opportunity to lead Phantasma to the door, Lori calling out to them "Have a good time, you two." before they departed.

"Hehe...sorry about that. I forgot I had told my sisters about my plans for today."

"It's ok, Lincoln. I haven't forgotten how excited your sisters get with your love life." His phantasmal girlfriend replied in a tone of understanding. "...so what have you planned for us today?"

"Well, I thought we could start with a little ice cream." Lincoln said, knowing that she had a great fondness for ice cream. The prospect didn't seem to lift Phanty's mood much, but she did agree to go. Seeing her so sad, and especially with her not knowing the reason why, was really tugging at the middle Loud's heart. However, without knowing what it was causing her such sadness, the best he could do was show her as good a time as possible; and he was planning to do that for her either way.

It takes the two a couple minutes to get to 'Here's the Scoop', but that was fine to Phantasma. She hadn't really had an opportunity to see much of Royal Woods the last two times she was here. As she was walking instead of floating, she wasn't getting as many strange looks from the citizens as she usually would (though her pale blue pallor did turn a few heads). The trip to the ice cream parlor was, thankfully, uneventful, and there was only a single child ahead of them in line: a little red headed girl with her hair done up and held with a little hair clip that looked kind of like a bone. Once she got her cone and moved aside, Lincoln and Phantasma moved up to place their order. It was at this point they heard "Hey Lincoln."

"Hey Phanty." The two of them turned and found Chandler and Zanya sitting in a booth together, sharing a monster sized sundae.

"Hey guys." The white haired boy replied.

"Hi Zanya." Phanty said, with a small smile and wave to her zombie friend. "Hi Chandler."

"How are you two doing?" Zanya asked cheerfully.

"We're doing alright." Lincoln replied, while the once giggly ghost simply shrugged.

"You two having a date day too?" The zombie girl inquired, to which the one son nodded. "So are we."

"By the way, Lincoln...what's up with your sisters?" Chandler asked, getting a bit of a glare from the white haired boy before he hastily continued. "I mean...as soon as I arrived to pick Zanya up, I saw them swarmed around her."

"Oh?" Lincoln turned to the undead young lady, a bit of a grin on his face. "Let me guess...they tried to put you in what they considered 'date attire'?"

"And took pictures, and gave her advice left, right and center." Zanya answered with a soft giggle. "They did try and perfume me too, but I put my foot down at that point. Lisa had to reattach it after, but it got them to stop."

"Of course, when they saw me, they bombarded me with questions. I'm not even sure what they were asking by the middle of it. It was all a blur…"

"Welcome to my world." Lincoln commented with a chuckle. "They can be kinda pushy when it comes to romance, but they mean well." Zanya nodded in agreement. Their ice cream orders were ready by that point: Lincoln ordered a mint chocolate chip sundae, and Phanty a double scoop of strawberry on a sugar cone. Zanya and Chandler motioned for them to come join them, but just as Phanty was about to follow Lincoln, she heard some soft sobbing. She turned her head toward the source and saw it was the little girl from earlier, her ice cream all over the floor. The man she assumed was his father, an overweight man with black hair, a big nose and wearing an orange polo shirt like Lincoln's (only with black spots all over it), was trying to console her to no success. She looked sadly at the child, then floated over to her and kneeling down in front of her. The young girl slowly looked up, eyes filled with tears as Phantasma, with a small smile, turned her own ice cream cone onto hers, then scooped up a single scoop into the girl's cone.

"Here you go." She said softly as she handed her back the cone. The child's face instantly brightened as she took the treat in her hands.

"Tank you!" She chirped, eating the ice cream a little more carefully now.

"Thank you so much, young lady." The overweight man said with a sigh and smile.

"You're both very welcome." She replied before she turned to rejoin her friends and boyfriend.

"Nice girl...wait, was she floating?" He asked, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on her. He looked down at his little red haired daughter, who simply shrugged to him.

"There you are, Phanty." Lincoln said as Phantasma walked over to their booth, sitting beside her human beau.

"Sorry about that. Saw someone who needed a little help." The ghostly girl said. Lincoln smiled to her and put an arm around her.

"You could give that ice cream some competition in the sweet department." He told her, bringing a soft blush to her face. Zanya couldn't help but giggle at that.

"So, anyway, as I was saying-" Chandler said, ready to continue the story he had been telling before Phantasma had returned.

* * *

After they all finished their ice cream and caught up for a while, Lincoln and Phantasma parted ways with Chandler and Zanya (Phanty in slightly better spirits, no pun intended), the two decided to stroll through the park for a little bit to walk off the frozen treat before they went on to their next stop. By this point, it had started to drizzle ever so slightly. Nothing more than a few drops here and there, really. Most people would be dissuaded from being outside from this, for concern of being rained on, but not the two Grimwood students. They continued on, holding hands as they strolled along. It was a nice, relaxing walk, which ended not far from the town's movie theater. Phantasma glanced toward the display that showed what movies were playing, then did a double take. "Oh! Lincoln, would you like to see a movie?" She asked suddenly.

"Hmm?" He paused in his tracks, looking up at the display. His eyes landed upon 'Supernatural Occurrences' movie, which made him go pale. Despite living with and being friends with monster girls for over half a year, after seeing 'The Harvester', he was pretty paranoid about horror movies. He shook himself out of his worry, then looked to Phanty. "W...which movie would you like to see?" He asked her, trying to keep the shakiness out of his voice.

"That one." She said, pointing to the name a few places over the horror flick. "'No need to ask: The Why story'." Lincoln blinked as he saw that, then smiled.

"Oh. I heard about them from Luna. Didn't know they made a movie about them." He said. "Sure, if you'd like to see it." The ghostly girl smiled again as they two of them headed to the theater, got their tickets and a soda each. While they were looking for the room their movie was being shown, the two of them noticed a trio of boys, looking about eight years old each, in a huddle. Each were wearing a similar outfit (a t shirt and ball cap with blue jeans), but each shirt and cap a different, matching color: one was red, one was blue and one was green. Lincoln just shrugged and continued to look, but Phanty gave the trio a soft smile and a wave when they looked up. They jumped a bit in surprise when they saw her looking at them, but gave a nervous wave and smile in return. She hurried to catch back up with Lincoln, who had finally found the right theater. To their surprise, there weren't many people in the audience, not even Luna (though Lincoln suspected if she knew about the movie, she would have been here day one). This was a plus to Lincoln, though, because it meant fewer people to bother them. "So, you like The Why, Phanty?"

"Mmm Hmmm." She replied with a nod, the middle Loud and her took their seats in the middle of the theater. "Not my favorite kind of music...come to think of it, I don't really have a favorite; but anyway, their music is great."

"I hear that." Came a female voice from behind them. The two of them turned around to see a young lady with black hair with a purple streak through it, a black jacket over a black and white striped shirt, a light purple checked skirt and white boots.

"Hey Tabby." Lincoln said with a light smile.

"Hi there, Linc." She said before looking to Phantasma. "Don't tell me...Phantasma, right?"

"That's right." The ghostly girl said in surprise. "How'd you know?"

"I'm friends with Haiku, and she told me all about you gals from Grimwood." Tabby exclaimed, chuckling a bit at Phanty's surprise. "I'm Tabby, by the way."

"Pleased to meet you." The once giggly ghost replied, shaking her hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the three boys from earlier sneaking into the theater, hiding in the back row. "Fellow music fan, I suppose?"

"Right in one, mate." Luna's younger friend answered with a smile and a nod. "No way I'm missing a movie about one of the great bands."

"Hehe. I'm with you on that one." The three of them chatted for a little bit about the band as they waited for the movie to start (though it was more Phanty and Tabby talking, since Lincoln didn't know as much about the Why as them). It was an enjoyable conversation, interrupted only by a loud din behind them all: turns out the usher had caught the boys from earlier and had gotten a big bucket of popcorn dumped on his head. The kids ran from the theater while the usher chased after them, bucket still on head, his rage filled screaming muffled and garbled by the container. On one hand, they knew they shouldn't laugh. On the other hand, however, it was hilarious to watch, so they couldn't help themselves.

* * *

The movie itself was just alright to Lincoln; it was pretty much the story of how the band got together, their high points, low points and how they were presently. It held his interest, but wasn't going to be among his top favorite movies. Phanty and Tabby, however, were loving it, and seeing the big smile on his spectral girlfriend's face was more than enough for the white haired boy to consider this a hit. "That was amazing!" Phanty chirped as soon as they all went outside after the movie.

"It sure was." Tabby agreed. "They got a few things wrong, of course, but what they got right, they got really right."

"Gonna go out on a limb here…" Lincoln joked with a slight smirk. "...and say you enjoyed yourself." Tabby giggled slightly while Phantasma nodded. She certainly seemed in a better mood than she was earlier, but she wasn't quite back to her old, bubbly self yet. The day was still young, though.

"Well, it's been a blast meeting you Phantasma, and great seeing you again Lincoln, but I gotta boogie on back home. Catch you two later."

"Alright. Bye Tabby." Phantasma replied, waving to her.

"See you around." Lincoln said as he waved to Tabby.

"She is a delight." The ghostly Grimwood girl said, turning to look at the human boy beside her. "How did you meet her?"

"Oh...well, we met at a Sadie Hawkins dance at school…" Lincoln said, his face turning kinda red and his face falling some. "You see, my sister Luna set me up with her for the dance, when she thought Ronnie Anne hadn't asked me...and she wasn't the only one." This got Phantasma's attention, causing her to look at her beau curiously. "...I kinda told my sisters that Ronnie Anne never asked me to the dance because I wanted to go to the arcade instead...but they took the opportunity to set me up with all their friends instead...Lynn's friend Polly, Luan's friend Giggles, Lucy's friend Haiku, and Luna's friend Tabby."

"At the same time?"

"Yeah...and they made me go too...my just desserts for lying, I guess…" Lincoln rubbed the back of his head, looking kinda guilty. "...and for avoiding Ronnie Anne during this time…"

"Well, that wasn't very nice, you're right…" Phanty said, crossing her arms and frowning lightly at him. "...so what happened next?"

"Well, I tried to appease my sisters and spend some time with all four of them, with some help from my best buddy, Clyde. It was going alright too...until Ronnie Anne arrived at the dance." The ghostly girl winced a bit when she heard that. "Fortunately, my friends were all there and I was able to set them all up with my sisters' friends, and they were cool with that. Then I got caught by Ronnie Anne…"

"Bet that didn't go well…"

"Actually, it turned out she wanted to ask me if I wanted to go to the arcade with her, so that's what we did, so it all worked out in the end. We all stayed friends after the Sadie Hawkins dance, and though only Clyde and Haiku are officially together, my friends and I remained friends with the girls."

"Hehe. That's good to hear. Any day where new friends are made is a good one, am I right?"

"You are right." Lincoln replied as the smile returned to her face. "Ready for the next stop?"

"Oh yes. What did you have in mind?"

"One of my favorite hang outs, Gus'." Lincoln replied, gently taking her hand. Phanty was a little confused, but went along with him. He had told her before about Gus' being an arcade/pizzeria, but she had never been into an arcade before. It took a couple minutes to get there, but when they arrived, Phantasma was amazed at what she saw, heard and smelled. All the arcade machines, the bright lights, the music from the games, the scent of pizza and garlic knots. It was nearly overwhelming for her. "So, what do you think, Phanty?"

"Wow…" She said in awe. "This is an arcade?"

"Well, it's one kind of arcade, but yeah." Lincoln explained, chuckling a little at the look on her face. "So, care to try a few games?"

"Sure!" She chirped. However, before Lincoln could lead the way, she stopped him. "Hang on a sec. Lemme try and guess which game is your favorite. See how well I know you." The white haired boy chuckled again and nodded. The spectral little lady looked all around the arcade, looking at each machine. She paused for a moment at a 'Muscle Fish' fighting game, but moving along until she came to the competitive dancing game. "I'm gonna say...that one."

"Heh. Good choice." He told her. "Think you can take me on?"

"You're on!" The musical miss declared, floating over to the machine. Lincoln quickly followed, placing a few quarters into the game so they could both play. "So...we just step on the arrows in time to the music?" Phantasma asked as he scrolled through the song selection list.

"Kinda. There will be arrows on the screen to indicate where we step once they reach a certain point on the screen." He explained. Phanty nodded slightly, then squealed as she saw a song on the list.

"Oh! That one! Please!" She exclaimed, pointing at the screen to a song labeled 'A Berry Happy Birthday' from the Strawberry Cheesecake cartoon.

"Huh. That's still around?" Lincoln muttered in surprise. "That was around when my parents were teens."

"I grew up with that show. It was my absolute favorite cartoon." Phantasma told him with a big smile.

"Ah. Well, if you want this song, then let's go for it." Lincoln said, selecting the song. He had no issues with Strawberry Cheesecake and he thought it shouldn't be that hard a song to start with. Quite the contrary, however. It started off fairly easy, but then got pretty darn hard. Arrows were flying almost as quickly as in Lincoln's favorite MMO. The one son was a seasoned veteren at this game and he was having difficulty. Phanty, while being new, was managing to hold her own pretty decently. It was very close; so close that they were starting to get the attention of other arcade patrons (or perhaps it was because of their choice of song). They didn't really notice, as they were focused on finishing the song. When the tune finally ended and the prompts stopped floating to the top of the screen, the middle Loud actually needed to take a breather before looking up at the score. It was very close, but he had managed to win by a margin of three points. "Whew...good game, Phanty."

"You too, Linky."

"Nice music choice, 'Linky'." A taunting voice said from behind. The couple turned back to see a pair of very familiar faces to Lincoln: Hank and Hawk. He sighed when he spotted the two bullies.

"Do you guys REALLY have nothing better to do than to come all the way from Hazeltuckey just to bother people here?" An exasperated Lincoln inquired.

"Pretty much." Hawk said with a shrug.

"So you like a little girl's show, eh, 'Linky'?" Hank asked, further attempting to mock him.

"Why don't you guys mind your own business?" Phantasma asked in a huff, vaulting over the backbar as Lincoln stepped around.

"Why don't you make us, stringbean!?"

"Watch it you two!" Gus shouted from the kitchen, causing everyone to jump a bit. "I kicked you two out before, I'll do it again." Hank rolled his eyes, while Hawk mouthed 'Blah blah blah'. The white haired Loud and ghostly gal took the opportunity to get a little distance from the two goons to a far corner of the arcade, Phantasma's mood slightly soured.

"Who are those guys?"

"They're called Hank and Hawk...a couple meatheads from Hazeltuckey." Lincoln explained with a sigh. "They come around sometimes just to make pests of themselves."

"Meatheads? Now that's just disrespectful…" Hank said threateningly.

"What do you think we should do about THAT, Hank?" Hawk asked, cracking his knuckles. Lincoln frowned at the two brutes, holding one hand behind his back, charging a sphere of swirling wind behind him. However, before it could come to that, Phantasma stormed forward, getting between the young man and the bruisers.

"Go away and leave us be!" She instructed sternly, pointing toward the door.

"Oh? And who's going to make us!? You!?" Hawk asked angrily, raising his hands to shove her.

"Phanty!" Lincoln cried out, raising the hand with the wind orb, about to strike. However, when the bully threw out his hands, they went right through her. The one son paused in his assault, as did the two troublemakers from Hazeltuckey. They looked horrified and confused as the spectral lass smirked slightly, her arms folded in front of her.

"W...what?" Hank stuttered as he held out a hand, the appendage going right through her face. "H...how is that? What are…?" He tried to ask, but the rest of the words simply stuck in his throat as Phantasma took a few steps forward them, forcing them to scramble back. Eventually, they backed into a change machine, with her face right in theirs. She just stared at them for a moment, before saying:

"BOO!" With that simple utterance, the two dimwitted goons screamed and bolted for the exit. Phantasma immediately burst into laughter, Lincoln slowly following suite once the adrenaline wore off and he dismissed his magical attack.

"That was great, Phanty." He told her, walking over and giving her a big hug.

"Thanks. I felt pretty good about it." She replied, hugging him back.

"Gotta admit...I kinda forgot for a moment that you're a ghost." He confessed with a blush.

"Aww, was my Linky about to charge in like a proverbial knight in shining armor?" Phantasma asked with a flirty grin, playing with his turkey tail a little.

"Yeah. I really was." He said, chuckling. "But I think you handled that much better." She smiled at him and kissed him on the nose.

"So, what should we play next?" She asked, the two separating from their embrace.

"How about a few rounds of Guitar Lords?" Lincoln suggested, pointing to the line of guitar arcade games to their right.

"Oooh! I like the sound of that." She said excitedly as she floated toward them. Lincoln was about to join her when he spotted a row of crane machines. Looking at the stack of plush prizes inside gave the one son an idea.

"Actually, why not start a game or two without me, Phanty? I'll catch up in a moment." He told her, though she was already trying the guitar for size. He smirked at her and moved over to the claw machine. 'Let's see how well I know my favorite ghost.' He thought to himself. About eight minutes later, the young man approached Phanty from behind, his hands behind his back. The ghostly Grimwood girl had just finished playing her second song on the game. "Sorry I took a bit. How's the game?"

"It's a lot of fun, but…" She turned to face him, her fingers on the neck of the controller kinda tied in knots. "...it's a lot trickier than I thought. Tee hee…"

"Oh…do you need a little help with that?" He asked, looking concerned at her.

"Oh no. I'll be fine." She said as she managed to unknot her own fingers. She looked over at the middle son and took notice that he was trying to hide something. "Hmm? What do you have there?"

"Have where?" Lincoln asked with a sly grin.

"Behind your back. What is it?" She asked again, trying to look around him, but he turned to avoid her seeing.

"It's a surprise. If you really want to see it, you gotta hold out your hands and close your eyes." He told her, his grin growing. Phanty quickly closed her eyes and held out both hands. She felt something soft and plush in her hands. "Ok. You can open them." When she did, she saw a little cartoon female mouse plushy, with a large bow on her head, a red dress with white polka dots, and yellow heels, in her hands. Her eyes grew, as did her smile.

"Aww! I love it!" She exclaimed, hugging it tightly. "Thank you, Linky!"

"You're welcome, Phanty." Lincoln replied, his heart swelling at the sight of her bright smile, and even more so when she gave him another big hug. A hug he returned with an added kiss on the cheek. The two went on to spend another hour or two in the games portion of the arcade before hunger started to set in. To Lincoln, that meant one thing: pizza time! He ordered them a plain cheese pizza (since there weren't any toppings on there he knew Phanty would like) and an order of garlic knots. The pizza was just ok, but Phantasma really enjoyed the knots (though they both knew they would need some serious mouthwash before interacting with Sibella). Once their dinner was finished and they departed the arcade, the sun was starting to go down. They would need to return to school in a few hours, but Lincoln still had one last place he wanted to go with her. It took a while to get to, going through the woods Lana knew like the back of her hand, but they eventually arrived as a sparkling, crystal clear lake surrounded by fairly clustered elm trees, with a few large stones and boulders by the shore. In the surface of the water, they could see the reflection of the stars and the full moon from above. Phantasma looked up at the clear sky with a smile, laying back against the grass and a fallen log so she could look at the stars more comfortable, her head resting on her hands. The one son laid back right beside her, ready to simply enjoy the evening with her.

"So beautiful out here…" Phantasma commented with a sigh.

"Yes, you are." Lincoln said, which got a cheery giggle from her.

"You sweet talker."

"Hehe. Feeling better?"

"Much." Phanty replied, gently nuzzling his cheek. "You know, I'm still not sure what was bothering me earlier." Lincoln tilted his head slightly in confusion. "It's kinda hard to explain, but I felt like...something had gone missing. A part of me disappeared. Not sure what, not sure why I felt it, but I did." Her good cheer seemed to fade for a moment, but shined back through shortly after. "But after the day we've had, it felt like that missing part was being put back together, and it's thanks to you, Linky."

"Anything for my favorite phantom." He said in a smooth manner. "But you know...I think there is one little thing missing."

"Hmmm? What's that?"

"Your adorable giggling." He responded, a crafty smirk growing on his face. "You're almost always giggling all the time. No worries though. I can remedy that." Before she could ask what he meant by that, he reached over and began to scribble his fingers along her underarms. Her eyes bugged out a bit as she flew right into hysteric laughter. She wiggled, laughed and giggled under his tickling fingers, which traveled down her ribs to her sides, then back up again. She didn't try to stop him, however, until nearly a minute had passed. That was when she struck, pouncing on her human boyfriend, still a mess of giggles as they rolled around in the grass. When they eventually came to a stop, Lincoln was on his back, looking up at Phanty, who had a smile on her face and a sparkle in her eyes. They simply looked at each other in the eyes for a moment before the spirited girl leaned in to share a loving kiss with the white haired boy. The two held the kiss until Lincoln needed to breathe, before cuddling together under the moonlight, enjoying the lovely evening punctuated by the chorus of owls and frogs in the night.


	4. Chapter 4: Her First Days

_AN: Special thanks to guest, who wanted to see Zanya's first days at Grimwoods_

* * *

Her first days

"Incoming!" Lana screamed out, ducking under a wall of snow and ice along with Lola, Luan, and Leni, avoiding a barrage of snowballs that flew at them. Giggling, she peeked her head back up, looking across the battlefield at her opponents. Lynn Jr was grinning like a maniac while Luna and Zanya packed more snowballs. Lori and Lily were sat on the sidelines, keeping an eye on the others while building a little snowperson with the Loud baby. Lisa stood to the side, acting as a judge during the snowball fight.

"Are they out of ammo?" Luan inquired, just as a snowball knocked Lana's hat off.

"Nnnnnope." The mechanically inclined twin replied as she quickly ducked back down and put her hat back on. "And they're making even more…"

"How are we going to fight back if we can't peek over our wall?" Leni asked, a snowball whizzing right over her head.

"Like this." Lola commented with a grin, setting up a snow shovel over a log and starting to load the scoop with snowballs. She even used a few of their own projectiles for her plan. "Go, Lana!" She yelled, her twin jumping on the other side of the shovel, launching an entire volley of snowballs in one shot.

"Uh oh…" Lynn Jr said, her grin vanishing as she saw the falling spheres of snow.

"Hit the deck!" Luna grabbed her sister and their zombie friend and pulled them under their barrier, narrowly avoiding the attack.

"That was too close...clever little brat…" The sporty Loud commented with a smirk. "Zanya, time for the heavy artillery."

"Aye aye, captain." The ghoul gal answered with a salute as she started to roll a great, big snowball.

"Brilliant idea, Lola." Luan complimented her younger sister as they loaded up their catapult. "This should get them to see we're 'snow' joke. Hahahaha!"

"Is it getting dark early?" The second oldest sister asked as she noticed they were suddenly cast in shadows. The four of them looked up just in time to see a giant glob of snow and slush headed right for them. They couldn't escape quick enough, so they ended up getting pasted with snow. However, the impact also launched their catapult, sending a retaliatory volley back.

"Great shot, Zan!" Lynn said, laughing as she gave her a high five.

"That'll teach them!" Zanya said as she returned the gesture.

"Uh...guys…" Their rock and roll sister pointed upwards into the sky. When the ponytailed athlete and zombie girl looked up, the three of them ended up getting pelted by a storm of snowballs.

"Alright, you lot. Game over…" Lori declared, shaking her head in exasperation, though she was still kind of grinning. "It's all fun and games until heavy ordinance gets involved…"

"Then it's hilarious!" The muffled voice of Luan from the mound of snow, her hand sticking out from the pile.

* * *

About ten minutes later, the Loud children and Zanya were all in their pjs in front of a roaring fire, sipping on hot cocoas after a fairly intense snowball fight. The only one who didn't have hot cocoa was Lily, who had warm apple juice in her bottle. "This is truly the life, right gals?" Luna commented as she stretched a bit and laid back against the back of the couch.

"You said it." Lana agreed, sitting with Charles and Cliff on the floor, petting them both.

"I do wish Linky could have been here for the fun." Leni said, looking toward the little crystal ball sitting on the living room table.

"If I know our elder brother, he is probably having plenty of his own fun at Grimwood's." Lisa said with a soft shrug.

"Yeah. Same with Lucy. Bet she's having the time of her life there." Lynn interjected with a chuckle, drinking her piping hot drink.

"Hey, Zanya…" Lori started, looking toward the pale, green skinned young lady who was nibbling on some cheese sticks. "You've been going to Grimwood's for a little while before the exchange, right?"

"Yep. About three years."

"What were your first days like?" The oldest sister followed up. "Was it difficult?

"Kinda." The undead child replied, putting her mug down on a coaster on the coffee table. "Mostly because I had spent a few years before being home schooled by my mother after being reanimated. Plus, there were these group of students that made things even more difficult. It's a bit of a story, but if you want to-" She stopped when she noticed she had the attention of all of the Loud siblings, who had grouped up on the couch, all making themselves comfortable in preparation of hearing the story. "-hehehe. I guess you do. Well, it all started when I was eight years old, after a pretty quick enrollment process…"

* * *

"Well, here we are, princess." Trent said as he parked their old car right in front of the gate leading into the grounds of Grimwood's Finishing School. The seasoned detective stepped out of the passenger's side of the old sedan, along with his wife and daughter. Zanya was about Lucy's size at that age and wearing a dark green blouse and black skirt. "Grimwood's School...Looks more like the Bates Motel."

"It does look a little spooky." The little zombie girl agreed, holding an overloaded duffle bag over her shoulder and a jumbo sized steamer trunk behind her.

"I think it looks perfect." Cynthia commented with a grin. "Just the kind of place I could do my experiments without being hassled."

"You wouldn't have been hassled if you hadn't accidentally turned all the grass in the neighborhood neon pink." Mr Talon said with a chuckle.

"Hmph. It was just an accident." The mad mother scientist said with a huff. "Besides, Kentucky has their bluegrass, we have our pink grass."

"Well, I guess this is goodbye for now." The young ghoul said, giving both her parents a big hug.

"Be sure to write often, sweetheart." Cynthia said as she and Trent returned the hug.

"Be good, Zanya. And be sure to keep plenty of snacks on hand." Her father told her.

"I will, Mommy, Daddy. Love you both." The young zombie said as they separated from the hug.

"Love you too, princess." The veteran detective replied as Zanya started to walk down the path toward the drawbridge. "Well, there she goes, honey. Our little girl, off to school."

"Sigh...it's just like when we saw her off to kindergarten just a few short years ago…" Cynthia commented, wiping a tear from her eye.

"Yeah…" Trent said with a sigh as he watched their daughter ascend the porch stairs and knocked on the front door. He gently took Cynthia by the arm and started to lead her back to the old car. At that point, the front door opened, and a slightly younger Miss Grimwood stepped into the doorway.

"Hello there. You must be Miss Zanya Talon." The mystical head mistress said with a small smile.

"Hello. Yes, ma'am."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, young miss. I am Miss Grimwood, the headmistress of the school." She introduced herself before shaking the young lady's hand. "Welcome to Grimwood's Finishing School for Girls."

"Thank you, Miss Grimwood."

* * *

**"After I dropped my stuff off in my room, I went to the common room to meet my new classmates. There were some nice ones…"**

The young zombie peered into the room before she nervously stepped inside. Sitting over by an old timey radio was a chocolate colored female garuda, wearing a black Hex Girls t shirt, and blue jeans, bobbing her head to some classic rock music. Sitting on the opposite side of the garuda was a gangly, thin, green skinned humanoid girl with solid muscles and stringy black hair. She was wearing a dark red t shirt and black sweatpants, as well as a pair of reading glasses. She was reading through a book on giants while listening to the music. Sitting apart from there was a small clique of three girls. The first was a harpy, with long, fiery orange hair. Her wings were a golden color, she was wearing a white tank top and a small pink skirt. One of her talons had a gold plating over it. Sitting across from her was a younger Sibella, dressed similarly to the harpy, only in a darker purple. The two were chatting actively with a gaunt, yet lovely banshee teen, with flowing silvery hair and a light, pale blue gown. The trio seemed to be paying Zanya no mind, though the garuda did see her, waving her over. "Greetings friend. I wager you're new to Grimwood's?" Zanya nodded lightly. "Welcome to our school then. I'm Rani."

"I'm Zanya...pleased to meet you." She replied before shaking her hand. The troll looked up from her book for a moment before setting a bookmark on her page, setting it down and pulled a small notebook from her pocket. She spent a couple seconds writing something down before turning it to show her.

"Salutations, Zanya. I am Astrid. It is glorious to meet you."

"Likewise. Um...if it's not a sensitive question...why are you writing down what you want to say?"

"Unfortunately, my verbal skills belie my actual intelligence." She wrote, before she followed by grunting quietly, "Astrid talk like this…", and finished by writing, "And yet, with a pen and paper, I can properly articulate myself. It is somewhat irritating, but not a lot I can do about it."

"I can imagine how that could upset someone…" The zombie girl said sympathetically. Just then, she heard some low grunts and ooks from her right. Zanya turned to see the banshee girl imitating an ape in response to hearing the troll girl speaking, making the harpy and vampire at her table burst out laughing. Rani and Astrid both just rolled their eyes at them, the latter returning to her book.

"Free bit of advice, Zanya…" The garuda whispered as she leaned closer to the newest student. "...don't have anything more to do with that lot than you have to." Zanya tilted her head a bit. "They're the 'popular girls' group, and are as nasty as they come."

**"...and there were some not so nice ones too…"**

"Well now...looks like we have a new student here…" The banshee commented with an echoing sort of voice as she floated over, the harpy and Sibella flanking either side of her. She had a somewhat malevolent look on her face.

"...hello. I'm Z-"

"Don't care." The ethereal teen said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I just wanted to make sure you understand the score around here." She raised her hand up above her head, as if she were describing someone taller than her. "This...this is me." She lowered her hand some, down to eye level. "This is Yolanda and Sibella." Chest level. "Miss Grimwood." Knee level. "Everyone else." She spotted an ant on the ground, smashing it like the bug it was under her bare foot. "...you. Are we clear?" Zanya's mouth hung open in utter disbelief of this ghost's rudeness. "...hmph. Seems Miss Grimwood enrolled a 'special' student...don't worry, stitchface…" She and her two friends laughed softly before she shoved Zanya's forehead, making her stumble back and nearly fall onto her back. "...I'm sure we'll be able to beat it into your thick head."

"Yeeeeaaaaah!" Yolanda and Sibella said in unison, sounding positively obnoxious.

* * *

"Hold it hold it hold it!" Lynn Jr interrupted, shaking her head as she interrupted the story. "...are we talking the same Sibella here? The same daughter of Dracula!?"

"I must concur with Lynn. It seems difficult to believe that Sibella would be such a sheep to a bullying ram." Lisa commented.

"I thought rams were boy sheep…" Leni commented, pretty confused.

"I am simply saying she is following a bad influence, Leni...I am not calling them the incorrect gender…"

"I know it sounds unbelievable, but it is true." Zanya explained to them, stifling a soft giggle. "Sibella was going through a bit of a brat phase at the time. We all do at one point."

"She's got a point." Lori agreed, smirking a bit at her slightly younger sister. "I mean, Leni went through a 'Mine!' stage at age four." The somewhat air headed blonde blushed and giggled, taking it in good humor. "And Lynn used to throw tantrums all the time."

"Luna was kind of the opposite, though." Leni commented, looking toward the rock and roll sister. "She was more a 'too good' girl before she went to her first concert." Luna rubbed the back of her head, blushing a little herself.

"And Lola is still going through the brat phase." Lana said, gesturing her thumb at her twin while laughing.

"What!? Why you…!" Lola dove at the hat wearing twin, who vaulted over the arm of the couch, laughing like a hyena as she kept just ahead of her furious sister. The other Loud sister and Zanya just laugh as they let the twins tire themselves out by running around the couch several times before Zanya continued her story.

* * *

The three girls turned their backs to the trio as they sauntered off out of the common room while snickering cruelly, the banshee with her nose in the air. "Case in point…" Rani commented quietly after they left.

"To be fair, Rani...it is more Magda than the others. She has been a corrupting influence upon Yolanda and Sibella ever since they arrived." Astrid wrote.

"Yeah, I guess." The garuda agreed with a sorrowful look. "It's a shame too. I thought we would have really got along with Sibella if Magda hadn't gotten to her first."

"She probably wouldn't have even given her time of day if she hadn't heard she was Dracula's daughter." Came a third, squeaky voice from not far away. Zanya jumped and looked around to see where that voice came from. There didn't appear to be anyone else there, or even anything out of the ordinary, outside of what looked like a beanbag chair by the reading table.

"What was that?" Zanya asked as she stumbled back onto the beanbag.

"Ouch!" The zombie girl sprang back to her feet as the 'beanbag' changed; creating the torso of a teenage girl with short, curly, slimy hair, and a blob like lower half.

"Oh! I am so sorry…"

"Heh. I wouldn't worry about it. Happens all the time when I nap in the common room." The young lady made of ooze said, waving off her apology. "I'm Moria, by the way."

"Zanya. Pleased to meet you." She replied, shaking Moria by the hand, getting a thin layer of slime on her hand.

"Oops. Sorry. Still having a little trouble controlling that…"

* * *

**"The four of us became fast friends, for which I was very grateful. Adjusting to life at Grimwood's was kind of difficult for me. Having spent a couple years being homeschooled, the workload comparison was rather overwhelming. Thankfully, Rani and Astrid were a big help, assisting me in getting used to all the class and after class work. However, there was one class I could never really do well in...spellcrafting."**

It was young Zanya's first class learning the art of magic and witchcraft, and she was pretty excited. The only other students who weren't there were Astrid, Rani and Magda (as they were all on their last years and learning more advanced magic). The zombie girl was sitting beside Moria, while Sibella and Yolanda sat together, well away from the two. "Alright girls…" Abigail Grimwood started with a smile. "I know you are all eager to get started, so let us begin with a very simple, but useful spell." She held her fist out in front of her, a look of focus on her face. When she opened her hand, a glowing ball of light appeared in her hand about the size of her head. The zombie girl, slime child and daughter of Dracula all looked on in awe at what they saw, but Yolanda looked utterly uninterested. "The light sphere. Once conjured, it can last for hours before fading. Just be careful not to handle it too roughly…" To prove her point, she chucked the orb behind her and the chalkboard. When it hit the ground behind it, it exploded in a bright flash of light. If the board weren't there, they could have been blinded.

"Wow…." Zanya gasped with a look of wonder.

"Wow…." Yolanda parroted in a mocking tone, getting a giggle out of the vampiress close to her. Miss Grimwood's eyes darted to her for a moment, but she didn't say anything about it right now.

"Now then, who would like to be the first to try?" Immediately, Sibella's hand shot up, not even giving her fellow pupils a chance.

"Me! Me! Me!"

"Hehehe. Very well, Sibella." The motherly witch said with a chuckle, motioning the young vampiress to the front of the class. "All you need to do, dear, is clench your hand into a fist…" She instructed, the lavender skinned gal doing just that. "...and then focus. Try to gather your magic into your hand. Let it form into a ball…" Sibella closed her eyes, putting all of her focus into this act. "...once you feel you've gathered enough, open your hand." After a few seconds, she opened her hand, a small glowing ball floating just off her palm. She smiled widely, her eyes twinkling as she looked at the orb of light. Zanya and Moria both clapped for her, while the harpy simply rolled her eyes. "Well done, Sibella. Very well done indeed." Miss Grimwood complimented her with a gentle pat on the back, sending her back to her seat. From there, she had the other students try for themselves at their desks. It took Moria a try or two, but she had succeeded in creating a light sphere. Yolanda, on the other hand, needed several tries before she even created a little orb. Zanya, however, seemed to be having a lot of difficulty. No matter how much she focused, how hard she clenched her hand, she couldn't seem to get the hang of the spell. As she became increasingly more discouraged, the middle aged sorceress moved over to her desk.

"I don't get it…" The zombie girl said sadly, looking at her green palm. "What am I doing wrong?"

"Please try it one more time, Zanya." The headmistress said softly. Zanya nodded and tried one last time, putting everything she had into it. As she attempted it, Miss Grimwood's eyes widened a bit, as if she had received some form of shock. She gently put a hand on her shoulder and said, "That'll do for now, dear." Before muttering under her breath "Please see me after class…" The young undead girl was kinda surprised and somewhat scared when she heard that. The rest of the class went on as planned, with only a minor incident when Sibella accidently put a little too much oomph into an object stretching spell, causing her desk to break in half. For some reason, she never asked Zanya to try any of the spells, giving the poor zombie the idea something was wrong. When the class finally ended and the other students departed, the undead child approached Miss Grimwood as she repaired Sibella's desk.

"You...wanted to see me, Miss Grimwood?" She asked nervously.

"Yes, dear...no need to be nervous. You aren't in trouble." She said, turning around to face her, kneeling in front of her. "I just wanted to speak to you in private about something."

"Oh...what about?" She asked. What neither of them knew was Yolanda hung back a bit, eavesdropping from the door.

"I don't know if you know this, Zanya, but I can sense magic...however, when I asked you to try and cast the spell...I couldn't feel anything." She explained quietly to her.

"You...you couldn't?" The headmistress shook her head.

"That's something I've never experienced before...every living being has some capability to use magic...even the undead. However...for some reason that escapes me, I can't sense any magic within you…"

* * *

"Wait...you can't use magic?" Leni asked in confusion.

"Nope." Zanya replied, shaking her head. "I didn't know it at the time, but there was something about the stuff my mother used to reanimate me that disrupts whatever innate magic I was born with."

"How curious…" Lisa said, tapping her chin. "Has Mrs Talon investigated this phenomenon?"

"Yes, but she was only able to learn pretty much what I told you. We're not sure what causes it. We just know that it does. And believe you me...when news of that got out how I couldn't use magic, Magda and her clique had a field day with that…"

* * *

Later that evening, Zanya found herself being followed by the banshee and harpy, the both of them laughing uproariously at her while pointing at her back. "Hahaha! Little corpse face is magically inept!" Yolanda taunted her loudly.

"Even the miserable slime can use magic! You must be some kind of freak!" Magda spat at her back. Zanya's face was turning red from embarrassment and from anger, but she kept on moving, pretending like she couldn't hear them. She made a beeline for her room, thinking she could get away from them in there. It only took her a few minutes, but it felt like an eternity before she slammed her door shut behind her. It stopped the harpy, but not the banshee. She phased through the door with a sinister smirk. "Think a wooden door could stop me? You're even dumber than you look…"

"Leave me alone…" Zanya said, close to descending into tears.

"Hmph. I'd like to see you try and make me, stitchface…" The banshee taunted her. She turned with the intent of shoving her out, but paused as she remembered that Magda was a spirit. She couldn't touch her. The poor undead girl was forced to concede defeat. "That's it. Now you're understanding your place." The cruel phantom said with a satisfied grin.

"Go away…"

"Why don't you go away? You're useless anyway. Can't do magic. Dim as a post. Ugly as sin." Zanya covered her ears to try and block out the verbal abuse, tears spilling from her eyes. "You'd be doing Grimwood's and the world a favor if you just got lost…"

"Why you don't you do all of us a favor, and beat it!?" Rani shouted from the door, catching both the zombie and banshee by surprise. The garuda raised a hand in her direction, which was glowing with a shimmering white light. "Ortenivas repul zazzanibor!" Before Magda could do anything further, she was thrown from the room with a burst of magical force screaming. "Miserable banshee…" She grumbled before approaching Zanya. "Hey...are you alright, Zanya..?"

"...yeah...I'm alright…" She replied with a slightly sobby voice. "...it was just words…"

"Hmmm. Well, contrary to what the saying says, words can leave deeper wounds than one can imagine." Rani said sagely, gently bringing the young ghoul to her bed, sitting beside her. "Don't listen to her, my friend."

"Why is she like that, Rani? You've known her longer than I have. Why is she so terrible to others?" The avian creature sighed as she shook her head.

"I'm afraid I don't know. Could be a great many things." She responded. "Granted, these would be reasons, not excuses; there can be no excuse for such bullying." She gently patted the saddened zombie on the back.

* * *

"Now that just ain't right…" Lynn growled, clenching her fists. "I can't stand bullies at the best of times...but bullies I can't even slug...they're even worse…"

"Did you tell Miss Grimwood what they were doing?" Lola asked, looking mighty upset as well.

"Once." Zanya told them, shaking her head. "...but what a mistake that was. That gave them the signal to go even harder on me. It wasn't just words anymore. They stole my homework, sabotaged my work in potions and home ec, tossed my backpack from the top of the gym tower into the moat…" She sighed for a moment as she relieved those moments. "Of course, Astrid, Rani and Moria tried their best to help me...they weren't fool enough to try anything physical in front of them...especially Astrid. She probably could have snapped Yolanda like a twig if she so chose. But they couldn't stay around me all the time. Rani did enchant my room to prevent Magda from being able to phasing through, though, so that was a big help…"

"So...what happened to make them stop?" Lynn asked, her blood really boiling at this point.

"...Sibella turning on them and me losing my temper." Zanya replied with a serious tone. "You see, what I didn't know at the time was, while Sibella was a brat at that point, she wasn't cruel like her 'friends', and as things were escalating, she was getting cold feet…"

* * *

Over in Magda's rooms, the banshee and her harpy and vampire friend were planning out their day, as it was a Saturday afternoon and they were free of classes. They were just throwing out ideas as to what to do to pass the time. "We could go to town and go to the shops." Yolanda suggested.

"Nah. I'm weary of their limited selection." Magda said, waving off her recommendation.

"Perhaps a movie, then?" Sibella interjected. "You could go invisible, so you wouldn't have to pay."

"Hmmmm. I don't think so. Nothing I really wish to see playing nearby…"

"How about we go find out what Stitchface is up to?" Yolanda said with a big smirk. The banshee tapped her lip a moment, a grin forming.

"Yes...we haven't put that little stiff in her place yet today...but how?"

"We could replace her next report with a letter openly insulting Miss Grimwood." Yolanda offered up first.

"No good. Miss Grimwood would know it's not her handwriting...she's not stupid, unlike that little zombie…"

"We could drop a tarantula down her blouse." Sibella recommended.

"That's first grade level, Sibella…" Magda told her with a roll of her eyes.

"Oh! We could lock her head in the breadbox and watch her body freak out again!" Yolanda exclaimed. "That was a scream."

"Hehheh. Yes, it was the first time." Magda said with a cruel chuckle. "But no...I want something that will leave a lasting impression."

"We could remind her of how she died." The harpy girl suggested with a smirk, getting Magda's attention. "I overheard her telling that pile of slime about it a few days back."

"Hmmm. That's a little more like it...but we could do better…"

"Um...isn't that going a bit far?" The vampiress inquired, cringing a bit. "I mean, you don't like talking about how you died…you've never even told us, your best friends…" The teen banshee slowly looked at her, making the young Sibella flinch. The phantasmal bully sighed before patting her on the head.

"Young, naive Sibella...you may be too young to understand now...but I will try and help you to understand." Magda said in a patronizing voice, leaning over closer to her. "We are of a higher place in life...or unlife in our case. Monsters like yourself and myself...we are the elite of monsterkind." She glanced over at Yolanda, who was giving her a hopeful look. "...and Yolanda too, I suppose." She added as a kind of afterthought, which seemed to please the harpy enough. "...as I was saying, it is our duty as creatures of an elevated status to remind the lesser monsters of who is in charge. It is the way of the world."

"But why does have to come so harshly?"

"Because it helps the lesson stick." The banshee explained in the same way a teacher would explain an obvious solution to her young pupil. "You offer them a carrot, they expect more carrots, but use the stick, and they will do whatever it takes to avoid getting the stick again. And some, like that rotting child, need to be beaten extra hard to get her to understand. It may seem harsh to you now, Sibella, but in time, you will see...it is for their own good." She gave Sibella another pat on the head as the vampiress just looked to the ground, lost in her thoughts. Meanwhile, Magda and Yolanda continued to plan their cruel prank.

* * *

"Wait...how do you know about this conversation if you weren't there?" Lana asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Sibella told me later on." Zanya replied. "After their plan went south."

"What was their plan, exactly?" Luan asked, a look on her face that said she was ready to judge their practical joke.

"They planned to hurt me." The zombie girl replied seriously. "Physically and badly. Magda was in her last year at Grimwood's and very skilled with magic. She was able to enchant a stone statue, with the intent of beating me to within an inch of my afterlife."

"...that's not a prank. That's just plain assault." The family joker said in a disapproving tone.

"Says the one who uses spring loaded boxing gloves…" Lynn muttered under her breath.

"Anyway...earlier that afternoon, I had 'lost' my bag of snacks. I was searching all over Grimwood for it. Eventually, I found it, in the basement…"

* * *

"What more could go wrong today…?" Young Zanya grumbled angrily as she searched through the interior of the school. "It's not enough Yolonda had to annoy me most the day, but now my snacks go missing...wonder who could have had a hand in that…" She mock wondered. Meanwhile, Magda, Yolanda and Sibella were down in the school basement setting the pack in front of a sandstone statue set into a relief in the wall. The statue depicted a giant with a large spiked club. Magda and Yolanda were giddy with excitement about what they were about to witness. Sibella, on the other hand, was shaking for another reason. Her conscience was tearing her apart. She had tried earlier to dissuade them from this stunt, but for all the good it did, she may as well have kept her mouth shut. "Sedimera retactu gurdorin." The banshee chanted, a dark purple aura surrounding the statue. She and Yolanda quickly take to the air, perching on a ceiling rafter to watch and wait for their victim. Sibella had turned into a bat, hanging from underneath to observe.

It took some time for Zanya to think to come down to the basement, as it was the last place to check. It didn't take her long to spot her bag right on the ground. "Hmmm. They're getting a little lazy." She commented quietly to herself, not realizing her bullies were right overhead. "They usually hide my things much better." Usually, Magda would become furious from such a slight. However, she was in too good a mood right now. Her trap was ready to be sprung. The zombie girl walked right up to her backpack, unzipping it to pull a few sticks of string cheese out for an immediate snack. While she was enjoying a bit of cheese, the statue beside her started to move. The cracking and scraping sound of stone on stone alerted her to the danger she was in, but too late. She turned to see the giant with its club already raised, and falling right for her. Before it could hit her, Sibella dove down toward her, changing back to normal mid flight, shoving the zombie girl out of the way. However, it meant she had taken the full force of the club herself.

"S...Sibella!?" Zanya cried out in shock as the vampiress screamed in agony.

"Stupid girl…" Magda said in disgust, glaring at the scene below her. The undead girl heard that little comment and looked up to see the cruel spirit and harpy, just sitting up there watching as Sibella had gotten badly hurt. The giant raised its club again, but neither of them were lifting a finger to help their 'friend'. Between knowing this was meant for her, Sibella's sacrifice, and their outright cruelty and apathy toward their supposed friend, it was like someone lit a stick of dynamite inside of Zanya...and it just exploded. Her eyes started to glow green as she let loose a furious scream; a cry heard even from as high as the tower. She rushed forward just as the statue tried to attack again, catching the spiked, stone bludgeon with both hands. Magda and Yolanda were both shocked at what they were now witnessing, but they hadn't seen anything yet.

"Grrrrrr! I'll SMASH YOU!" She roared, squeezing the sandstone weapon between her hands and, with a little effort, shattered it to pieces. Then, she went utterly ballistic, slamming her fists into the statue's legs, reducing them to dust in seconds. When it tried to punch back, she ripped its arm off in her fury and started to beat the monstrous construct with its own limb, and didn't stop beating until the arm crumbled to bits. The statue had stopped moving, its face being shattered to pieces and its chest a mess, but Zanya still wasn't finished. She just started pummeling what was left with both hands, reducing it to a pile of dust and pebbles. She was breathing heavily, an enraged look on her face, when Miss Grimwood arrived on the scene. She gasped at what she saw; the rage filled zombie girl now glaring at her, an unconscious Sibella on the ground, and the heap that used to be a statue beside them.

"Zanya…" The motherly witch said calmly, cautiously approaching her. Zanya growled in response. "It's ok, child...I just want to check on Sibella...please." Abigail made her way over to the fallen vampiress, Zanya stepping aside to give her room. The daughter of Dracula had taken a nasty hit to the head, and had a bruise going all down her back from the impact of the club. "Oh dear...what happened here, Zanya?" The zombie girl was still too angry to talk, but she did point up toward the ceiling. The head mistress looked up to see a petrified (with fright) Yolanda. Magda, seeing things were going south, had vacated the area, leaving the harpy all by herself. Miss Grimwood frowned, raising an eyebrow at the stunned half bird girl, an expression insisting an explanation.

* * *

"...Yolanda, of course, tried to say I attacked Sibella." Zanya told the Loud children, who were all hanging on her words. "However, there was clear evidence the statue had moved from its relief, and Miss Grimwood could see that Sibella's bruises didn't match her story. She tried to get Magda to support her telling of the events, but she denied even knowing what happened. I think Miss Grimwood suspected she may have been involved, but there was no proof. I did a bit too good a job destroying the statue for her to check for magical signatures, and the only other witness was out cold for over a week. In the end, Yolanda ended up being the first and only student to ever be expelled from Grimwood's."

"What about Magda?" Lori asked cautiously, suspecting she wasn't going to like the answer.

"...she got off without even a warning." Zanya said sourly, clearly upset about that. "At least, she escaped disciplinary action. After she betrayed Sibella and Yolanda, literally no one in school wanted to even look at her, much less hang out with her. She spent the remainder of her last year friendless. She couldn't even try and lash out at me for it, because Miss Grimwood was keeping a closer eye on her."

"Hmph...I don't like the fact she didn't get in trouble for that…" Lynn grumbled.

"You and the rest of us, sis…" Luna told her, patting her shoulder.

"Did Sibella ever recover?" The dimmest of the sisters asked with concern.

"In time, yes. As I said, she was out cold for a week after the incident. Yolanda had already been expelled when she came to. She was pretty disoriented, only having vague memories of what had gone down. I visited her after she woke up and we got to talking about what happened. From what I told her, she pieced together pretty quickly how her once best friend had turned her back on her, and I guess it gave her reason to reflect. She apologized to me and the others, and we started to become friends from there. She was still kind of a brat for a while, but she was getting better and kept improving." She paused for a moment to finish her cocoa, which was only barely warm now. "By the time Magda, Rani and Astrid all graduated, and Phantasma and Elsa joined the school, she had just about reached the point she's at today."

"Do you have any notions as to what had happened to that felonious phantom after her education had ended?" Lisa inquired, to which Zanya shook her head in reply.

"I don't know, and honestly don't really care." She answered verbally. "Rani, Astrid and I still kept in touch though. From what I heard, Astrid became a literature teacher, and Rani an occult archeologist."

"Would I be correct in assuming that occult archeology is the study of historical sites, relics and scriptures-?"

"-relating to the arcane and occult, yes." The zombie girl finished her thought for her. "She says it's pretty dull most days, but when she finds something new, it's like christmas morning. Last time we spoke, she said she found an ancient stick doll that may very well have been one of the first voodoo dolls,"

"Coooooool." Lana said with a smile. "Bet that would be right up Lucy's alley."

"If she doesn't just go full on witch." Luan interjected.

"Of course, even with Magda gone, crazy things still tended to happen at the school." Zanya said with a giggle. "Occupational hazard of a school for monsters that teaches magic and alchemy...but that's a story for another time." A few of the sisters moaned and groaned at this.

"Oh, relax, guys." Lori intervened. "She's already gone and told us quite a story already."

"I know, but I reeeeally want to know what happened next." Lola whined, looking kind of pouty. "How did she get along with Phanty and Elsa?"

"What happened to the cool slime girl?" Lana jumped in with her own curiosity.

"Actually, I have a question of my own." Luna piped up after looking somewhat pensive. "My bro told Mom and me about something called 'the Revolta incident'. You were at Grimwood's when it happened, right? How come you weren't involved?"

"I promise I will tell you all about all that sometime soon." The undead girl assured them with a smile. "But for right now, I just want to relax for the rest of the evening." She added, laying back in her chair to make herself more comfortable. Lola, Lana, Leni and Lily were a little disappointed when they heard that, but they didn't object. Instead, they themselves settled in for an unusually quiet evening by the fire.

* * *

_AN: Hope you all enjoyed that. I will probably do a couple more Zanya flashback stories later down the line. And don't worry; this won't be the last we see of Rani, Astrid, Magda or Yolanda (or at least I hope not)._


	5. Chapter 5: Big Trouble with Little Tanis

_AN: Very sorry this took so long. The first two times I attempted to write this chapter, I didn't like how they were turning out, so I had to start over each time. Heck, I had to rewrite this version of this chapter once too, because I originally planned to have a bully involved, but I've done the whole bully thing too much already. Thought I'd take it a different direction. Don't think it's one of my better chapters, but hope you will all enjoy it. Before we get to the story though, a few comments I'd like to answer. First and foremost, to a guest that has been constantly asking me to do a chapter about Ronnie Anne's family learning about the polyamorous relationship she is involved with: they already know. They were right there when Ronnie Anne discussed the matter with Phantasma and Sibella. Bobby even confirmed they knew during the first part of the Thanksgiving chapter._

_Guest: Kids can be cruel sometimes. As for the Invisible Kid idea...I like it. I'll see what I can do._

_Ironchef: I'm afraid I am unfamiliar with that webcomic series. My apologies, but I'm afraid not._

_Jster: Nope. She can't use magic. But she has her exceptional strength to make up for it...plus one other perk that will be made clear later on._

* * *

Big problems with Little Tanis

Mid afternoon on a bright, sunny day, and the youngest of the Grimwood girls could be found with her elbows resting on the bay window sill facing the front of the school. She was staring out the window, though she wasn't really looking out there. If anyone asked her, she would say she was waiting for Lincoln to get back. This was...partially true. She had asked her "big brother" to exchange a few library books for her. She would usually do this herself (going with him or one of the girls into the village since she was too young to be out on her own), but she couldn't go to the town anymore. Why? Because of a new kid who had recently moved into the little town. The boy, named Corman, had taken a great interest in her. A very great interest...

It was three weeks ago, when Lincoln had brought Tanis to the library in town. Lucy had introduced her to the 'Goose Pimples' horror novella series and she became an almost instant fan. However, the only place she could get more of these books (presently) were at this library. She didn't mind so much, though. She liked going into the village. The residents were always so nice to her, finding her positively adorable. In this case, it was part of the problem. She was standing outside the library, waiting for Lincoln to take care of his own business in there as she read through the tale of the freaks: insectoid creatures living in disguise among humans, waiting for their opportunity to take over. She was about a few pages in when she had that feeling. That feeling she was being watched. She looked up and noticed a young man on the sidewalk looking at her. A rather handsome young man with a bright blond buzz cut, a red button up shirt and blue jeans. She gave him a soft smile and waved, but he quickly looked away. She wasn't really bothered by this, however, and simply returned to her book. A few minutes later… "Ahem."

"Hmm?" Tanis looked up, seeing the boy was much closer now. Almost right in front of her. "Oh. Hello there."

"Good day, miss." He said with a warm smile. "I'm Corman."

"I'm Tanis." She answered with a smile of her own. "So, you're new in town?"

"Yeah. I guess the same could be said for you?"

"Oh no. I've been around for over a year, just not in town. Over at Grimwood's Finishing School."

"Oh! I see. So...if it's not a sensitive topic...what happened to you?" He asked in concern.

"What do you mean?"

"The...um...full body cast…"

"Full body…OH! Oh no." Tanis said, giggling a little. "I'm not hurt or anything. I'm a mummy."

"A mummy? A real live, so to speak, mummy?" Corman inquired in surprise, to which she replied with a nod. "Wow. I never would have thought I'd meet a real mummy. Sorry about the misunderstanding."

"Don't worry about it. I get it a lot." She said, waving off his apology.

"...look, the reason I came over was...I wanted to give you this." He pulled a large, yellow flower from behind his back, holding it out to her, his cheeks turning kinda pink. The little mummy blinked, gently taking the flower in her hand. It was around this point Lincoln came out of the library.

"Ok, I think that does it. All set to go Tanis?" He asked, turning to look at little Grimwood girl. He blinked as he saw Tanis simply staring at the flower and the blushing Corman looking at him with surprise. The blond haired boy made a hasty retreat the moment the two made eye contact. "That...was strange…" Lincoln muttered before he walked over to Tanis. "Was he bothering you, little sister?"

"No. No, Lincoln." She replied, shaking her head. "He was actually really ni-ni-aaaachoo!" She suddenly sneezed, blowing a few of the petals off the flower.

"I didn't know you were allergic to flowers…"

"I'm not." She replied before sneezing again, leading to Lincoln taking the flower away from her.

It was that day she learned she was allergic to wild flowers...for some reason. At any rate, the problems didn't necessarily start then. After all, Corman was a nice enough boy, and even in their subsequent meetings, he was still quite nice. Very nice. In fact, he was too nice. Every time she went back to the library to get the next novellas in the series, she ran into him. And each time, he would talk to her only when she was alone (at first) and then give her some form of gift. At first, it was more wild flowers, but after he learned she was allergic to them, he apologized and stopped. After that, it was candy, a stuffed animal, and lots and lots of letters; the first of which confessing his love for her. The idea that he had fallen for her at first sight like that...she wasn't sure how to feel about it. 'I mean, sure, it seemed really romantic...like something out of one of those fairy tales mortals are so fond of.' Tanis thought as she went over the events that led her to this point. 'And he is genuinely sweet guy...but I hardly knew him at the time…' She pulled his most recent letter from her pocket, glancing down at it. It was sickeningly sweet, as only a child could write. It actually made the little mummy a little bit ill to look at it. '...and he doesn't know much about Grimwood girls either…' She sighed as she put the note away. 'Besides...I'm only five years old...I'm not ready for a boyfriend…'

"Hey, Tanis." Winnie said from right behind her, making her jump right up to the curtain rod.

"Winnie! You scared me…..nice one!" She complimented her friend, getting a soft laugh from the werewolf girl. Tanis let go of the rod, getting caught by Winnie before she could hit the ground. It was then she noticed that Gila, Phanty, Wendalyn and Silas were there with her.

"Is everything ok, Tanis?" Gila asked, looking at her friend with concern.

"Ye seem a might melancholy, lass." The minotaur commented, his arms crossed in front of him. "Yer not usually like that."

"Is something bothering you?" Phantasma asked, floating over to her mummified friend as Winnie put her down.

"Kinda…" Tanis admitted. "You see...there's this young man at the town…"

"Is he bothering you?" Winnie asked, her fangs bared.

"Do ye need someone ta teach him some manners…?" Silas inquired, cracking his knuckles loudly.

"No! It's not like that!" Tanis exclaimed, shaking her head and hands. "He hasn't been bothering me like that...in fact...he likes me…"

"He likes you?" The giggly ghost repeated with a big smile.

""As in, likes you likes you?" Gila asked, getting a bit of a twinkle in her eyes.

"...by the horns of me Great Grandfather…" The minotaur scot groaned, shaking his head with his hand over his eyes.

"What's the problem then?" Wendalyn questioned with a smile of her own. "That sounds like good news."

"Hold yer tongue, lass…"

"That is the problem." Tanis answered, which earned her a lot of funny looks. "He likes me too much. It's more than I can handle."

"...Maybe you should start at the beginning." Winne said, not sure if she really understood what she said.

"Sigh...it's like this: a few weeks ago, I met this boy named Corman outside the library." The little mummy started to explain. "A really nice boy, I admit. That first day, after we talked, he gave me a flower."

"Awwww." Phantasma, Gila, Winnie, and Wendy all cooed.

"I was allergic to it."

"Aww…." The four girls groaned in unison.

"It was an accident though, and he apologized...but after that, he started giving me all kinds of gifts and love letters…" She reached into her pocket and showed them the letter she was carrying with her. The four ghoul girls leaned in for a look and cringed almost immediately.

"Eeeyuch…" Winnie spat in disgust.

"Even Linky isn't that mushy with me, Sibella or Ronnie Anne…" Phantasma commented, before a soft blush and smile appeared on her face. "He's just mushy enough."

"I think I see your point." Gila groaned, stepping away from the letter. "So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know...I mean, he is a nice boy, but I'm not ready for a boyfriend...least of all one like this." Tanis said with a sigh.

"Ye know, lass...Ah think ah can help ye with this problem." Silas said, stroking his chin a bit as he thought. "And with no force." He added quickly just as Tanis opened her mouth. "Here's what we do...next time ye need ta go ta town, ah'll go with ye. When the lad gets one like at me, he'll be running fer parts unknown."

"...I don't want to scare him any more than I want to hurt him." She replied. Silas just shrugged and threw his hands up in a 'you try to help someone…' manner.

"Have you tried talking to Lincoln?" Winnie suggested.

"I'm afraid to." The little mummy confessed. "I'm afraid he'd go into full big brother mode if he heard about this…"

"Fair point…"

"Tanis...I think I see what's going on." The ghostly girl said, floating over to the mummy gal, her eyes glancing up toward the bay window for a moment. "You want to him to back off some, but you don't want to hurt him emotionally either, right? Because you know he's a nice guy?" Tanis nods to her, looking her in the eyes. "Well, then all you need to do is let him down gently. Just...uh...just be nice and…" Phantasma seemed to be looking toward the window again. Curious, the youngest of the girls turned to look out the window, but there was nothing there. "...Just be nice and polite about it." The ethereal girl quickly finished. The mummy girl silently looked to the window for a moment before turning back to her friend with a smile.

"You know...you're right." She said, which made Phanty break into a smile. A smile that faded a little as she walked to the door. "You know, it really reminds me of the kind of advice…" She suddenly opened the door, letting Lincoln fall through the doorway almost onto his face. "...that Lincoln would offer me." She finished, with Winnie, Wendalyn and Silas all laughing, Gila giggling and Phantasma shrugging sheepishly at him.

"...how'd you know?" Lincoln asked her from the floor.

"I didn't. I just kinda guessed from the way Phanty was looking at the window." Tanis admitted as she helped him up. "So...you heard it all?"

"Not everything. I got home right when you were telling them about the boy giving you a flower." He confessed, levitating the bag from the library into the school. Tanis' face fell a bit.

"I'm sorry, Lincoln…"

"Sorry? What...oh, you mean…?" She nodded to him. "Heh. Don't worry about it, Tanis. After the whole Sigmund thing, I probably might have...or at least would have given him a stern talking to." He half joked, which made Tanis giggle softly. "But seriously, Tanis. Just be nice, but honest with him, and I'm sure it will work out."

"Thank you, Big Brother." She said, giving him a big hug "And thank you everyone." She said, getting into a group hug with all of her friends, though Silas didn't get involved.

"Silas, don't be a spoil sport." Winnie said, encouraging him to join in.

"Like to, lass, but a hug from me would crush most of ye." He said.

"It's a risk I'm willing to take." The little werewolf muttered under her breath.

A few days later, Tanis was returning to the library, Lincoln right beside her with a bag of books in one hand and her hand in the other. The moment they arrived, she spotted Corman coming out of the library. She took a deep breath, getting ready to say what she needed to say. However, the words that came out of his mouth, she never could have expected. "Oh! There you are, lambcake." Corman called out to her.

'LAMBCAKE!?' A horrified Tanis thought, her whole face bright red. Lincoln winced when her heard that, leaning a little closer to her.

"Are you sure you don't want backup?" He whispered to her.

"...no. I think I can handle this." She whispered back, thought her confidence was a little shaken. The white haired warlock nodded and made his way toward the doors to exchange Tanis' books for the next ones in the series. The little mummy remained outside, facing the infatuated young man.

"It's been a while since I last saw you." He told her, a small smile on his face. "I missed you, lambcake."

"Please don't call me that…" She groaned. "Corman...we need to talk."

"Before we do…" He pulled a small box of chocolates from behind his back, along with a note. "A little something I wanted to give you a little bit ago, but you didn't come to the library and I couldn't find your older brother to ask him to deliver them." He explained as he handed them out to her. She sighed, gently pushing them back.

"Corman...that's very sweet of you…" She started to say, looking him in the eyes. "...and I do appreciate it...but I don't really feel comfortable accepting all of these gifts."

"You don't?"

"No. I really don't." Tanis continued. "And I especially don't feel comfortable being called-" She shuddered a bit in horror before proceeding. "...lambcake…"

"Oh...I see." The handsome human boy said, Tanis' words seeming to sink in.

"I know you're trying to be nice, Corman, and like I said, I do appreciate it. However, it's so overwhelming…I can't handle it...you understand, right?"

"Yes. I understand." Corman replied, which brought a sigh of relief from Tanis. "And I promise I'll hold back on the gifts."

"Huh?"

"And I won't call you...that, anymore." He continued, smiling to the little mummy. "I don't want to make you uncomfortable after all, sweetie." He added, giving her a small hug and leaving the candy box and note before he hurried off, without giving her a chance to finish her thought. Tanis just watched him leave before she face palmed.

"I'm sorry, Tanis…" Lincoln said sympathetically to Tanis, the young, mummified girl face down on his bed in defeat and exasperation.

"It's not your fault..." Her muffled voice replied from his mattress. "...but what am I going to do now? I mean, it is a step in the right direction, but he missed the point. A point he never really let me get to…"

"Maybe you should have started with how you weren't ready for a boyfriend?"

"...I had a hard time thinking of a softer way to put it…" Tanis admitted. The one son couldn't really blame her, though. Telling someone who seemed to legit love you that you aren't ready for a relationship...it wasn't an easy thing to explain. "...Lincoln, do you think your sisters might have some advice for me?"

"...I don't think asking them would be a very good idea." The white haired boy responded with a cringe. "My sisters...have a very bad track record when it comes to meddling with someone else's love life." Tanis turned her head to look at her brother. "I'm serious. When Ronnie Anne and I...weren't together yet and…"

"Back when she wasn't so nice to you?"

"...yeah. Well, they were convinced it was because she liked me." The little mummy turned and sat up, looking at him in utter disbelief.

"...that is ridiculous."

"Well, to be fair, they did turn out to be right...later down the road." The one son admitted with a bit of a shrug. "But when I acted on their advice at the time, I got a black eye for it." He continued, pointing at the eye that had been punched.

"And then there was the time they put me in these ridiculous outfits to impress Rocky." Lucy said from the foot of the bed, causing Lincoln and Tanis to yelp and jump a little.

"...do you think you could teach me how to do that?" The daughter of the Mummy asked once she had calmed down, an eager grin on her face.

"Perhaps later." The gothic girl replied, smiling lightly as she looked to her brother.

"I swear...I will put a bell around your neck if you keep that up." Lincoln warned her, to which his sister simply kept smirking. He said that a lot, but he has yet to try it. "But back on topic...there was also that time we thought Bobby was cheating on Lori...so yeah, even I goof up when meddling in someone else's love life." Tanis groaned as she laid back against a pillow. Was there anyone who could help her with this problem?...who wouldn't just scare Corman away?

"So, what exactly is ailing you, Tanis?"

"A kid in town is in love with me, but I'm not ready for a boyfriend…" She explained sadly. "But he doesn't seem to be taking the hint, and his affection is almost suffocating…"

"Hmmm. I can see where that could be rather tough…" Lucy commented. The young mummy nodded slightly. "Perhaps what you need then is someone who's tough to help you."

'Someone who's tough?' Tanis thought, staring up at the ceiling. Her first thought was Winnie, but she had a tendency to go over the top. Lynn Jr? No. If one Loud gets involved, they all do. 'Wait...Lincoln has said before that Ronnie Anne is really tough.' She suddenly thought. 'Maybe she could help...besides, I'm not really sure where else to turn to.' Tanis sat up, looking toward her 'big brother'. "Lincoln, do you think I could go talk to Ronnie Anne for a bit?"

"Ronnie Anne? Well, I could ask her. Hang on." He pulled out his phone and speed dialed his human girlfriend's number. After a few seconds of waiting… "Hey Ronnie Anne. It's Lincoln. How are you doing?...Yeah, I'm doing fine. How's your family?...good to hear. They're doing alright, last time I spoke to them...Great, great, although Tanis would like to talk to you for a little bit. Yeah, she's right here." He held his phone over to Tanis. "Here you go."

"Hello?"

"Hey Tanis. Lincoln says you wanted to talk to me?" Ronnie Anne's voice inquired though the phone.

"Mm Hmmm." The little mummy responded.

"Cool. Why don't you come over?" The latina suggested, surprising Tanis. "The way he said it, it sounded kinda important, and I think important talks are best done in person. Besides, when was the last time we just hung out together?"

"Um…..never." Tanis responded after a moment.

"Then it's about time we did." RA replied cheerfully. "Come on over." The young monster girl thought about it for a moment. On one hand, all she really wanted was a little advice. On the other hand, Ronnie Anne was right. They've never really hung out before, and it could be an experience.

"Alright. I'll be right over." Tanis answered before returning Lincoln's phone. "Would you tell Miss Grimwood where I'm headed, big brother?"

"Sure thing, little sister." The white haired boy replied, waving to her as she placed her hand on the teleportation orb and, in a flash, vanished from sight.

Over in Ronnie Anne's room, the tough city girl was oiling up her skateboard wheels, supervised by the family parrot Sergio. It was right then the young mummy appeared in a flash of light, startling the bird. "Rawk! Beam me up, scottie!" He squacked, flying out onto the fire escape.

"Heh. Hey Tanis." Ronnie Anne greeted her with a smile, putting her board down.

"Hello Ronnie Anne." She replied, looking around the room. "Nice room."

"Thanks. You should see the view." The raven haired city girl suggested, moving over to the window leading to the fire escape. She helped give Tanis a boost so she could look outside. While the building next door dominated most of the view when looking right out the window, leaning outside the window gave Tanis a decent view of the city. Her mouth hung open in awe, as she hadn't seen such a city before in her short afterlife. While she was filled with a sense of wonder, the parrot just looked at her with an inquisitive look before he flew back into Ronnie Anne's room.

"Awk! Maria! One of your patients came for a visit!" The bird called out.

"Say what!?" Ronnie Anne's mother inquired as she hurried to her daughter's room, standing at the door looking all kinds of confused. Ronnie Anne turned around, still holding the little mummy in her arms, which only confused her more.

"Uh...hey Mom. This is Tanis, one of Lincoln's friends and classmates from Grimwood's school." Ronnie Anne explained after a moment of awkward confusion, setting the monster girl down.

"Pleased to meet you, ma'am." Tanis said with a sweet smile, walking over to Maria Santiago, holding a hand up to her.

"Oh. Hello Tanis." She said after a moment of processing what she was seeing, shaking the little mummy's hand. "So...you're a….real…?"

"Mummy. Yep."

"Ah. I see. I had heard Ronnie Anne and her boyfriend were friends with monster girls...but I didn't think I would end up meeting one in person." Maria said, kneeling down for a closer look at her.

"Hehe. That's fine, Ms Santiago. I get that a lot." Tanis replied, just smiling at her.

"What brings you here,Tanis?"

"I wanted to speak to Ronnie Anne about something." The Grimwood girl replied. She didn't really want to go into details right there just yet. Ronnie Anne's mother nodded in reply, but before she could say anything, Carlota and Carlos Jr had peeked into the room to see what was going on.

"OH my goodness…" Carlota gasped in surprise as she zipped past the wall, door and Maria, ending up on Tanis' other side. "She is SO CUTE!" She gushed, giving her a big hug, which made Tanis blush and giggle.

"Wow. A mummy." Carlos Jr commented as he entered the room, smiling for a moment before he suddenly looked confused. "Shouldn't there be a daddy too?"

"Hey! Give her a little space, guys." Ronnie Anne said with a hint of annoyance, trying to pry the mummy from her cousin's grasp. "Sorry about that, Tanis." She apologized after she managed to get her free.

"It's alright. I get that a lot too." She responded. "First time into town, I was so swarmed by little old ladies who thought I was the sweetest thing, Miss Grimwood had to come 'save' me herself." She added with a laugh, which made RA, Maria, Sergio, and Carlos Jr laugh too.

"I can't blame them. You're weapons grade adorable." Carlota commented, gently patting her head around her bow.

"Perhaps we should talk outside." Ronnie Anne suggested as she grabbed her board and helmet.

"Oh! I think I have some skates that could fit her." The oldest of the Casagrande kid's offered, rushing off to her room.

Minutes later, Ronnie Anne was skating across the sidewalk, headed for the park (thinking they could get some peace there), with Tanis skating along a little bit behind her. As Carlota said, she had a pair of roller skates that fit the young mummy perfectly, along with a spare helmet. She got many odd looks from the city folk as she rolled by them, but she paid them no mind. She just tried to keep up with Ronalda, while enjoying the scenery and the skating. It only took the two a few minutes to reach the park, which was fairly crowded, but not so much that they couldn't get around. RA led her friend from Grimwood to a park bench where they could sit and speak, suspecting the other citizens in the park wouldn't care about their conversation. "Alright, Tanis. What's on your mind?"

"Well...a few weeks ago, I met this boy in the town close to school…" She started, kicking her legs a little as she spoke, looking down at the concrete path by the bench.

"This isn't going to lead to a 'how do I get a boy's attention', is it?" Ronnie Anne interrupted her with a quizzical look. "Because if it is, I'm the wrong girl to ask...unless sloppy joes down the pants became the new note leaving." She joked with a chuckle.

"No no." The youngest of the class shook her head quickly, turning her attention to Ronnie Anne. "I already have his attention...trouble is...it's too much." The human girl blinked, a little thrown by this revelation. "You see...he says he fell for me at first sight, and he's been overwhelming me with his attention. Flowers, love letters, candies, pet names…"

"Is it really that bad?"

"...he called me Lambcake…"

"...yeesh, it's worse." Ronnie Anne said, faking an expression of illness. "...though not quite as bad as Bobby with Lori."

"He is a nice guy...he really is...but I'm not ready for a relationship." Tanis continued, staring down at her feet. "I tried to tell him, but he didn't get the hint…"

"You told him you weren't interested?

"Well...I tried to. I wanted to be as nice as possible about it…"

"Lincoln's advice?" Tanis nodded lightly. "Uh huh. Listen Tanis, while he isn't necessarily wrong, it's not always the best strategy." Ronnie Anne said, turning the Grimwood girl so she would look right at her. "I love Lincoln to pieces, but everyone knows he can be too nice sometimes. Nothing wrong with being nice, but sometimes...you just have to be straightforward and blunt." The latine explained, Tanis tilting her head a little. "There are some people in this world who just won't leave you be unless you tell them flat out no. I speak from experience."

"But won't it hurt his feelings?"

"Probably. Being rejected, even nicely, can be hurtful." Ronnie Anne admitted, which made the monster child feel even worse about the situation. "I'm sorry to tell you this, Tanis, but sometimes, no matter what you do, feelings will be hurt." Tanis whimpered softly upon hearing that. "...that said, it doesn't mean you can't make it hurt less. You can say no tactfully, just so long as you make it a clear, concise no." She amended, patting her softly on the shoulder.

"You think so?" She asked, her large eyes shimmering a bit with the threat of tears. The skater girl nodded with confidence, wiping the tears from Tanis' eyes.

"Come on. Let's skate around the park a little more, and I'll give you a few pointers before we head back." She offered, getting to her feet and onto her board. "Maybe stop for ice cream too."

"...could I get those little sour candies on top?" The little mummy asked hopefully as she hopped off the bench.

"Hehe. I'm sure they could help you out with that." RA responded, the two of them rolling along down the path through the park.

It had been an hour since Tanis had left for Great Lakes City, and Lincoln had to admit he was getting pretty worried. He trusted Ronnie Anne, of course, but he still worried about Tanis. Cities could be rather rough, after all. He was just about to call them when green smoke started to fill the orb. Within a few seconds, both Ronnie Anne and Tanis appeared in his room, the little mummy licking a soft serve vanilla cone with tiny chunks of sour candies all over it, and the city girl had a half drank strawberry shake in one hand and a mint ice cream cone in the other. "Sorry it took so long." She said, smirking as she handed him the cone.

"Thanks." He replied, taking the sugar cone in hand. "How did your talk go?"

"It went alright." Tanis told him between laps of her ice cream. "We did have to get out of the house to really talk though."

"Thank Sergio for that one...bird can't keep his mouth shut." Ronnie Anne said with a roll of her eyes. "I love that loco parrot, but sometimes…"

"But we did have a nice talk, and a fun skate through some of the city and the park." The Grimwood Girl continued. "I think I know what I'm going to do." As if on cue, there was a knock on the door to Lincoln and Silas' door.

"Lincoln? Has Tanis returned yet?" Miss Grimwood asked through the door. "She has a guest asking for her."

'Well, here goes…' Tanis thought to herself before she verbalized "Yes, Miss Grimwood. I'll be right down."

"You sure you'll be ok?" Lincoln asked in a low voice as they heard the headmistress depart.

"I believe so, big brother. I'll be fine." She answered, taking a moment to prepare herself before she left the room.

"You know, it's really cute the way she calls you big brother." Ronnie Anne commented with a chuckle.

"We should go with her anyway…" The Loud warlock said quietly, standing up from his spot on the bed.

"I was thinking the same thing. I'm sure she'll be fine, but it never hurts to be sure."

Down in the entry hall, Corman was waiting patiently, yet nervously for Tanis to arrive. He wasn't alone, though. Elsa was keeping him company while he waited. She was aware of her friend's situation with the young man, but not only did she know that Tanis wanted to resolve the issue herself, but he was being nice and polite. Therefore, she treated him with the same respect she would any other guest to the school. That said, it was still an awkward wait, as Corman's nerves prevented him from saying much. Like more humans who visited Grimwood's school, the school kind of creeped him out. However, he wanted to see the little mummy again, and soon enough, his patience was rewarded. The daughter of Mummy Daddy carefully descended the stairs, looking down at Corman. The creaking of the stairs alerted the young man to her presence, making him look up and smile brightly. "There you are, sweetie." Tanis blushed softly, but didn't stop until she reached the ground floor.

"Hello, Corman." She replied politely.

"I was hoping you'd be here. I wanted to ask you...would you like to go to the movies with me?" He asked her with a hopeful expression.

"Actually, Corman…" She started to say, but he cut her off.

"...and then we could go get some ice cream, and maybe go for a nice long walk…"

"Corman, if you could just…"

"...and then, as the sun starts to set, I can escort you back to school and-"

"No!" She suddenly snapped. Corman was positively taken back by this outburst, as was Elsa, and Lincoln and Ronnie Anne at the top of the stairs. Tanis took advantage of his brief shock to continue. "I'm sorry, Corman, but the answer is no." She rephrased herself, calmer this time. "As I tried to explain the last time we met, I'm not ready for a boyfriend." She continued, the young man just staring at her, completely stunned. "I'm sorry, Corman...but I hope we can-" Before she could finish her thought, the blond haired boy's eyes rapidly filled with tears, his lip quivering. Before she could inquire if he was alright, he suddenly started crying loudly. Tanis instantly felt bad for making him cry like that and was about to say something, but Ronnie Anne had put a hand on her shoulder. The two met eyes for a moment before she shook her head.

"Let him get it out of his system." She whispered to her, though she herself felt great sympathy for the boy. This was far easier said than done, however, as the boy had thrown himself onto the floor, pounding on the thin carpet as he screamed and bawled. His pseudo tantrum was starting to draw the attention of the other Grimwood students, as well as Miss Grimwood and Mr Van Ghoul. With a little help from Lincoln, the latina was able to keep them from intervening as Corman's tearful caterwauling started to cease.

"Corman…" Tanis said softly, approaching the young man on the floor as soon as the crying stopped. "...I'm sorry."

"...No...I'm sorry, Tanis…" He replied in a slightly choked voice, sniffling and wiping his eyes on his sleeve. "...I'm sorry for getting carried away, for not listening...and for that tantrum right there…" The little mummy helped the blond haired boy stand back up, his face red from embarrassment.

"It's alright, Corman. You just got a bit emotional." Tanis told him.

"Not that there's anything wrong with being emotional." Lincoln interjected. "Provided you don't let it get too out of control."

"And as for getting carried away...I know you weren't trying to upset me or anything. You were trying to be nice."

"Think you'll be alright there, kiddo?" Ronnie Anne asked Corman.

"Yeah...still kind of sad about not having a girlfriend…"

"Well, we can still be friends, though." Tanis pointed up, giving him a kind smile. "Would you like that?"

"...yeah." He answered, slowly smiling himself. "Yeah, I would like that."

"Great!" The youngest of the monster girls cheered. "Why don't we kick this friendship off by going outside to play?"

"Race you outside!" Corman declared before the two of them ran for the front door.

"Hehe. I think those two are going to be just fine." Lincoln commented with a smile as the two went outside.

"I agree." Lucy said. "...but do you think they'll get together later?"

"Lucy…"

"I think they will." Phantasma offered her opinion. "They look so cute together. Maybe when Tanis is ready for a boyfriend."

"Ah dunno, Phanty. The lad seems nice enough, true...but what do they have in common?" Silas countered, shaking his head a bit.

"Well, they like each other enough to be friends now. It's highly probable their relationship could grow." Elsa reasoned, hands on her hips as she looked out the window at the two friends.

"Just because they are friends is no indication of possible romance." M-149 argued in a matter of fact voice. "Winnie is friends with Lincoln, but no romantic feelings exist there."

"She has a point...no offense, Linc." The young werewolf said apologetically.

"None taken." The one son said. As the rest of the students continued to debate about whether Tanis and Corman would get together, Ronnie Anne gently tugged on Lincoln's arm and nudged her head toward the stairs. He smiled softly at her and walked back upstairs with her, taking the chance to enjoy his partially melted ice cream.

"You know, I'm happy that they managed to work it out." The raven haired latina told the middle Loud as they headed back to his room.

"Me too. I was pretty worried when I heard about this, but everything was resolved nice and peacefully." He responded. "Thanks for helping Tanis, Ronnie Anne."

"My pleasure, querido." RA replied with a soft blush and a big smile. "Any little sister of your is a little sister of mine." The white haired warlock smiled back to her as they made their way into his room and past the blanket divider that separated Lincoln's half of the room with Silas'. The moment they passed the boundary, Ronnie Anne got a sly look on her face. "You know...I don't have to go back home RIGHT away."

"Hmm? What do you-?" Lincoln started to ask, turning to face her. He got his answer right away when she waltzed right up to him with an alluring smile, setting her mostly drank shake aside and giving him a loving kiss on the lips. A kiss he was more than happy to return.

"Mmmm. Minty." She commented when they eventually separated, still grinning at him.

"Is that why you picked it?"

"That, and I know it's your favorite." She gave him a quick wink before the two young lovers started kissing again.

'You know me so well.' He thought to himself as he enjoyed a rare, private moment with Ronnie Anne.


	6. Chapter 6: Lily's Day at Grimwood's

_AN: A chapter for two stories in one day. I'm on a roll today. This chapter was suggested by Ironchef, though the premise was slightly changed from an accident to a purposeful teleport. Eitherway, thanks so much for the suggestion. Before we get to the story, let's answer a few questions and comments:_

_Alexpv22: Actually, no. While I did start with writing fanfics on deviantArt, I haven't been back on there in ages._

_Jster: You bring up a good point. What if Zanya didn't have to hide the fact she was a zombie and Malora knew from the get go? Would be an interesting what if. But in answer to your question, she was just being a brat for being told no, which she wasn't used to hearing. Add on to the fact her immature taunting and threats meant nothing to her, and things just escalated from there, as they unfortunately do. And at least the divider in this case was with Lincoln's consent and helps them co-exist a bit more peacefully at them moment._

_Guest: Sorry, but no. As awesome as a kaiju fight would be, I don't really plan to bring the grown ups back until the next Halloween episode. And I have little to no knowledge of Jurassic World and Blue the Velociraptor. I've only ever seen the original Jurassic Park._

_That's all from me for now. Enjoy the story._

* * *

Lily's Day at Grimwoods

Spring Time. To some, it was a time of renewal. To others, a time for romance. To others, it meant only one thing: Spring Cleaning. This was an arduous event for most people, but at the Loud House, it was nothing short of a project. With thirteen people (half of which teenagers and one baby), there was usually a lot to clean around this time. Even with Lincoln and Lucy away at Grimwood's and Zanya's strength, there was still a lot to do. What made it all the more difficult was the fact Lily needed to be watched. If she got underfoot while, say, someone was carrying something heavy down from the attic...well, no one wanted to even think about it. The question is: what can they do? The rest home was doing their spring cleaning too, so they couldn't ask Albert to watch her. Aunt Ruth was a no go too: Lily and her cats didn't mix. So after some deliberation, they decided to try asking Lincoln if he could watch his baby sister. Maybe Miss Grimwood didn't start spring cleaning yet. Lynn Sr pulled out his phone and quickly pressed the speed dial button for his son. "Hello?" Lincoln asked over the phone.

"Hey Lincoln." His father responded cheerfully.

"Hi Dad. How are you doing?"

"We're doing fine. Just doing our annual spring cleaning."

"Oh yeah. It is that time, isn't it?"

"Yep. How about you?"

"I'm doing alright, and so is Lucy. She's adjusting great to Grimwood's."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that."

"So, do you guys need any help with your spring cleaning? I've got the rest of the day open."

"Are you sure? Isn't there cleaning to be done there?"

"Nah. We took care of spring cleaning last week." The white haired lad explained. "Mostly through magic."

"Ah. Well, would you mind watching Lily for a few hours in that case? It's a little busy here and we wouldn't want her getting hurt."

"No we wouldn't. And sure. I'd be happy to watch Lily."

"Thank you so much, Lincoln. We'll send her over in a little bit."

"You're welcome. Talk to you later, Dad."

"See you later, son. Take care of yourself and your sister."

"You too."

* * *

Lincoln hung up his phone with a smile. He wasn't in his room at the time, but outside, enjoying a quiet read under the old dead tree with Sibella, Mark, and Lucy. While the sun wasn't out, it was still a nice, pleasantly warm day. He closed his trade collection comic and rose from his spot beside Sibella. "Leaving so soon?" She asked, somewhat disappointed.

"Sorry, Sibella, but my parents asked me if I could watch Lily for the afternoon."

"Oh? Well, that is important, and very sweet of you." The vampiress said with a smile. He smiled back to her, but before he could head back into the school…

"Excuse me, Lincoln." Miss Grimwood called from the garden. "Would you be a dear and give me a little help here, please?" He looked to the middle aged headmistress, thinking for a moment.

'It shouldn't take long.' He thought to himself. 'And I don't think they'll send Lily over right away.' He nodded to Abigail. "Certainly, Miss Grimwood. What do you need?"

"Thank you so much, dear. I just need your help pulling some fresh crops from the garden." She explained, pointing out a few stalks with fresh corn, some ripe tomato vines, a few eggplants, and a plump watermelon. Lincoln was well aware of the monster students not eating fresh food. Over time, he had gotten used to it himself. Surprisingly quick too, though he never really thought about it. Anyway, the request wasn't a surprise to him.

"Right." He said, moving over to the first stalk. "What are you going to do with all this fresh produce, by the way?"

"Usually, I would just pile it into the compost heap and let nature take its course. However, if you'd like them, Lincoln, then feel free to help yourself. I know humans do enjoy fruits and vegetables when they're fresh, and we have more than enough compost for a good, long while."

"Thank you, Miss Grimwood." He replied as she pulled up the stalk and started to pick the ears. "My dad is going to love cooking with these." The motherly witch smiled to him as she went along with watering the garden.

* * *

Meanwhile, up in his room, it turns out the young man was mistaken. Within a minute of Lincoln hanging up, Lily had appeared out of seemingly nowhere, sitting on his bed with her blankie in one hand, teddy in the other, and a diaper bag right behind her. She had a big smile on her face, expecting to see her brother, but was confused to see no one there. Within a few seconds of her arrival, Winnie peeked into the room from the open door. "Hey Linc...you home?" She asked, looking toward his half of the room. "Huh? Lily?"

"Weenee!" The baby Loud exclaimed, giggling as she saw her. The werewolf girl chuckled a bit, walking over to the infant.

"Heh. Hey, Lilster. It's Winnie, not Weenie."

"Weenee." She repeated.

"...right." The ginger haired wolf girl said in mild annoyance. "So what are you doing here? And all by yourself, too."

"Inkin." Lily responded. Winnie looked between the baby and the stuff on Lincoln's bed and a light bulb lit over her head.

"Oh. Lincoln's watching you today, huh? Shouldn't he be...here?" Lily simply pointed to the clock beside Lincoln's bed. "Just got here?" She nodded. "Ah. That makes a bit more sense. So, you have no idea where he is either? Heh. Well I guess we should look for him together. What do you say?"

"Yeah, yeah." Lily replied, nodding. Winnie chuckles and picked her up, putting the infant on her back.

"Hold on tight, Lily." The werewolf girl told her, getting on all fours and walking out into the hall like a wolf.

"Hehehehe. Giiup. Giiup." The Loud infant requested, holding onto the back of Winnie's dress.

"Wish granted." She replied with a smirk, starting to move at nearly a run. The baby girl giggled even more, enjoying the ride. This encouraged the werewolf girl to run a little faster. The both of them were having all kinds of fun. Unfortunately, the fun was about to end with the introduction of a throw rug into their path. The moment Winnie stepped upon it, she started to slip and slide. "Whoa whoa whoa! Watch out, Lily!" The young lycan cried out as she two of them were slipping uncontrollably. The infant was still having a ball, despite how quickly they were headed for a wall. Before they could collide, a pair of hands grabbed the baby from Winnie's back and pulled her up to safety. The werewolf girl, however, ended up slamming into the wall.

"That was close." Wendalyn said with a sigh. She was standing upside down from the ceiling, holding Lily in her hands. "Are you ok there, sweetheart?"

"Poo poo." Lily responded cheerfully.

"Thank goodness." The arachnotaur then looked to Winnie. "Are you alright, Winnie?"

"Yes, mother…" The werewolf groaned, seeing and hearing birdies from the crash.

"You should really be more careful." Wendy told her, carefully skittering down the wall to the floor. "Especially with a baby." She then looked back to Lily with a confused expression. "...what is a baby doing here?"

"That's Lincoln's baby sister." Winnie explained after she shook out of her daze. "I think he's watching her. Trying to find him so we can find out."

"Then perhaps you shouldn't race down the hall with her on your back."

"How was I supposed to know that rug was there…?"

"Well, regardless, how about I keep an eye on her while you find Lincoln?" Wendy offered, smiling at Lily.

"Ah, but she was having fun…" The werewolf girl groaned. However, she knew her eight legged friend had a point. "Well...alright...I'll see you in a bit, Lily."

"Bah bah, Weenee." Lily called, making Wendalyn giggle and the lycan face palm.

'Great...well, at least it wasn't Phanty who heard that, or I'd never hear the end of it.' She thought to herself.

"And I'm Wendalyn, but you can call me Wendy." The arachnotaur introduced herself.

"Wenny." Lily replied with a big smile.

'She gets called Wenny, I get called Weenie…' Winnie thought kinda grumpily as she ran off to go find Lincoln.

"Would you like me to read you as story, Lily?" Wendalyn asked her, to which the infant nodded excitedly. "Okie dokie. Let's just head down to the library and we'll find a nice story for you." The spider girl said as she carried the baby downstairs.

Moments later, Wendalyn was perusing the shelves of the library, trying to find a book appropriate for the Loud infant, as she sat on top of one of the desks in the room. Lily's eyes looked in all directions, drinking in as much of the room as she could. Everything was a new sight for her, and it made the ever curious and adventurous baby want to see even more. "Let's see...spells, history, science...fiction, here we go." The spider girl said, smiling as she find the right section. "...now where are the fairy tales?"

"I think we have some in the alchemy lab." Tanis said as she strolled into the library, making Lily giggle at the unintended joke.

"Hehe. Thanks, Tanis, but I was talking more fairy tale stories, for Lily."

"Lily?" The young mummy blinked and turned to look at the smiling babe sitting on the desk. Her face lit up in an instant as she ran over to her. "Gasp! Hi Lily!"

"Tanni!" Lily declared, giving Tanis a hug when the monster girl hugged her first.

"I see you know each other."

"Uh huh. I know most of Lincoln's family." Tanis responded.

"Then maybe you can help me. What kind of story do you think she would prefer? Banshee and the Prince? The Three Minotaurs Gruff?"

"I think she'd be more a Three Little Babi Ngepets fan." The little mummy explained, the titles only confusing the baby. "Oh, it's more or less like the mortal's Three Little Pigs." She explained to Lily. The infant smiled and nodded to them.

"Sounds good to me." Wendalyn said with a smile, pulling the book from the shelf and skittered over in front of Lily and Tanis (who decided to stay and listen too)."Once upon a time, there were three little Babi Ngepet brothers. The three had struck out on their own, ready to build their own homes. The first wereboar was rather lazy, and just wanted to get the job done with quickly, so using straw and reeds, built himself a little hut for him to live in. The second wasn't as lazy, but not by much, so he built himself a home of sticks and twigs. Now, the third Babi Ngepet was a smart little boar. He had gotten bricks and mortar and built himself a strong house of bricks. It was a lot of hard work, but he knew he needed a strong home, for there was rumors of a Barghest in the area…"

While Lily was paying attention and enjoying the story, she still had wandering eyes, looking around at the library as the story was read to her. As she looked to the entry to the hall, she spotted a floating hand passing by. This sparked her curiosity, the infant crawling away silently from the mummy and spider girl. She looked down the corridor to see the hand turning the corner at the end of the hall. Determined to find out what that was, she got to her feet and started to toddle after the floating hand. Unfortunately for her, the ambulatory limb was long gone by the time she got to the corner. She wasn't about to give up that easy, however, so she continued down the way.

* * *

Meanwhile, Lincoln had returned to his room, carrying a few sacks of produce on his back. When he opened the door, he spotted the diaper bag on his bed. He blinked and hurried over for a closer look. "Lily's diaper bag? They sent her already!?" He said out loud, panic filling him. "Oh no...where is she!?"

"What's up, Lincoln?" Gila asked, looking into the room, alerted by the one son's panic.

"My baby sister, Lily, is somewhere in the school!" He told the fish girl, highly strung out. "And I don't know where!"

"Whoa, slow down a little, Lincoln." The creature's daughter said, walking over and patting him on the arm. "She couldn't have gone too far. We'll find her." Lincoln took a moment to regain his composure and nodded, the two of them leaving his room and hurrying off down the hall (in the direction opposite of where Winnie and Lily had gone).

* * *

After a few minutes, Lily started to realize she lost the hand, much to her chagrin. What's more, the baby was lost in the school. Between the frustration and building fear, the infant's eyes were filling rapidly with tears. Before she could start crying however, she heard something in a room just ahead. It sounded like...grumbling? She crawled her way over for a look and noticed it was an empty classroom. Well, devoid of students more accurately. The room was filled with desks, including one for the teacher, and a blackboard covered with figures and numbers that reminded Lily of the board Lisa always worked on. The grumbling was louder in here, so the baby pressed on. The source of the noise was a bored, somewhat cranky Matches, looking for something to do. He wasn't sure why he decided to check the math classroom, but who knows? Maybe he would have left one of his toys in there. Unfortunately for the little dragon, this was not the case. He opted to look elsewhere when he ended up bumping right into Lily, getting nose to nose with her. The human infant and the pet dragon just looked at each other in silence for a moment. She had never seen something like him before; she thought it looked like one of Lana's pets. Matches just blinked for a moment, but being in a pretty bad mood already, thought he would just scare her for fun. He started to growl at her, steam leaking from his snout.

Instead of being scared, however, Lily just cooed and giggled, patting the dragon on the head. The little hothead was NOT prepared for that, having difficulty processing what just happened and what to do about it. This gave the Loud baby an opening to scritch him right behind the ear fins. Matches was caught off guard again, but this time, pleasantly so. His anger seemed to melt away as he tilted his head closer to her so she could reach easier. Lily giggled and kept up with the gentle scratching. A big, dopey smile appeared on the dragon's face as he flopped down onto the wooden floor, reminding the little girl of their cat back home. She started stroking his back like he were a cat, the little dragon drifting off to sleep right on the floor. Around that time, Phantasma phased her way through floor from the basement, giggling a little. "Get all the way down there and forget my sheet music. Where is my head?" She commented, in her usual good humor.

"Phanny!" Lily called out happily, getting the giggly ghost's attention.

"Lily? Well, hello there." She said with a bigger smile, picking the infant up. "Hello there!" She repeated in a more babyish voice, nuzzling the infant, the both of them giggling. "What are you doing here?"

"Goo gaa rah rah blipple poo poo." The baby explained. To most, this would sound like baby babble. However, Phantasma seemed to understand.

"Oh, Lincoln agreed to watch you." She said with a nod of understanding. "But where is he? Did you sneak away?" Lily shook her head and tried to explain the events that led her to this point. "He wasn't there when you arrived? That's strange. But maybe he's in his room now. Come on. Let's go see." Normally, Phanty would have floated through the ceiling to get there, but with a mortal in her hands, she would need to go the long way. Not that she minded at all. "Are you enjoying your time here at Grimwood's?" The see through girl asked, to which Lily nodded enthusiastically.

* * *

As Phanty was heading for the stairs, Lincoln and Gila were rushing down the stairs. They couldn't find Lily anywhere on the upper level, so they hoped she was down on the ground floor. The moment they got down, Winnie had come inside from outside, looking annoyed. "I wish I knew where that guy went..." She muttered just as Lincoln jumped over the last two steps and landed right in front of her. "Whoa! That worked!?" The werewolf girl exclaimed in surprise. She then smirked as she got an idea. "...I wish I was a giant again." She said, grinning as she waited for a few seconds. Nothing. "...I thought it was too good to be true…"

"Winnie! Have you seen Lily!?" Lincoln asked frantically.

"Yeah. Wendy took her to the library to read her a story before I went to go find you." The young lycan explained, pointing in the direction of the reading room. The white haired lad breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, thank goodness…"

"Come on. I'll take you to them." Winnie motioned them to follow her as she sped off toward the library. As soon as they were gone, Phantasma and Lily had arrived in the entrance hall, levitating up to the second floor.

Meanwhile, in the library…

"...and the Big Bad Barghest huffed and puffed, scratched and rammed at the solid wood door of the practical wereboar's home. However, nothing he tried could even budge it." Wendalyn related to her audience (which was only Tanis, though she didn't know this).

"Wendalyn! Is Lily here!?" Lincoln asked as he, Gila and Winnie barged into the room of books, starting the arachnotaur and mummy. "Oh...sorry...and hello Tanis."

"Hi Big Brother." Tanis responded, waving to him.

"Lily is right…" Wendalyn gestured to the empty spot beside the youngest of the girls, her face falling. "...there?"

"Oh no...not again…" Lincoln groaned, face palming.

"No way she could have gotten that far." Winnie declared, rushing back out of the library. "If we split up, we should find her."

"Right. Tanis and I will check the basement." The half spider girl said, grabbing the young mummy and skittering off.

"I'll check the classrooms. You guys check over by the kitchen." Winnie instructed, running out the doorway back into the hall, on all fours. Lincoln and Gila soon followed, making a mad dash for the dining room and kitchen.

* * *

Back upstairs, however, Phantasma had returned Lily to Lincoln's room, setting her back on his bed. "Hmmm. Linky isn't here...but I'm sure he'll come back in a bit. In the meantime, I'll keep you company, 'kay?" The Loud baby nodded, just before her little tummy grumbled. "Oh! Sounds like someone's hungry." The spirited ghoul girl said with a giggle. She floated over to the bag to find some baby food. It was around this time when Silas strolled into the room. Noticing the curtain was open, he turned his head to see what was up. He was about to greet Phanty in a jolly manner, but then he spotted Lily. He blinked and stepped over for a closer look. The baby took notice of his and her jaw dropped at the sheer size of this new face. He was so big compared to her, she ended up leaning back so far she ended up falling onto her back to get a look at his face. She was soon looking at the piercing eyes of Silas, who leaned in for a closer look at her. Lily was feeling pretty scared at this point: she had never seen someone as big as him before. Then, he spoke.

"Well, saw me horns. Where'd ye come from, wee princess?" He asked with a soft chuckle, picking the baby up in his large hands. Lily breathed a sigh of relief; another friendly individual. Phantasma looked up in alarm, but relaxed instantly when she saw the smile on Silas and Lily's face.

"Hey Silas." The ghostly gal greeted him.

"Good day, lass. Who's the wee one? A living cousin?"

"No. She's Lincoln's baby sister, Lily." She explained.

"Lily, ye say. A pretty name, that is." The minotaur glanced around the room and frowned. "...where is the lad?"

"We...uh...we don't know." Phanty admitted.

"Hmph...such a neglectful brother…" He grunted. Lily's eyes flashed as she glared up at the bull teen. She slammed her fist into his chest, which he barely felt, but it did get his attention.

"No! Inkin gud!" She objected angrily, getting ready to punch him again.

"I should have warned you, Silas. They are a very close family." Phanty explained, trying not to giggle at the sight.

"Alright, alright. I take it back, Lily." He said hastily, concerned she may end up hurting herself trying to hurt him. The infant seemed satisfied with him, but was still giving him the stink eye. "She's a feisty one."

"They all are." Phanty explained, smiling at Lily.

"Why don't you go look for the lad? I'll watch the little princess." The brawny half bull offered, taking the jar of baby food from her.

"...are you sure, Silas? I thought you didn't like humans."

"Aye, I'm sure. And sure enough, I don't, but I'm not going to hold a grudge against the wee ones. They haven't been born long enough to do any harm. I'm nae a brute." He responded, frowning lightly at Phantasma. The see through girl just smiled to him and nodded.

"Alright. I'll be back in a moment." She said before she phased through the floor. The minotaur teen walked back over to his side of the room, opening the jar of baby food. Lily was looking up inquisitively at him. She was wondering why he didn't like humans, but couldn't really ask him. He did notice the look on her face as he was about to offer her a spoonful of strained carrots.

"Something on yer mind. lass?" He asked, the adorable tot nodding in reply. "What about?" Since she couldn't verbalize her thoughts, she tried to use her hands and facial expressions. She pointed at him, then looked really angry, then pointed to her brother's side of the room. "Why am I angry at Lincoln? Oh no, lass, I'm not angry at him. It's nothing personal against your brother at all." He started to elaborate as he fed her her lunch. "I just don't like humans in general. They always treated me and me mother like we were true monsters...I mean, we are monsters, but we're not 'monsters'...ye know?" Lily nodded, simply listening to him. "It all came to a head when they sent a monster hunter to slay me…"

"Bah man?" The youngest loud asked, remembered what her sisters told her about a bad hunter some time ago as he continued to feed her.

"That's putting it lightly, wee miss. He was more of a monster than any of us. Thank Echidna I was able to escape him with only a scar on me leg."

"Bah man urt Inkin…" The baby said aloud, looking upset herself.

"Come again…?" He asked, uncertain if he heard her correctly. There was no way that was right. Why would a human monster hunter harm a fellow human? It made no sense to him. But Lily repeated the same exact thing. He had no idea what to make of that. Before he could ask for clarification, the one son came running into the room, breathing heavily. Phantasma had found him within a few seconds and, upon telling him where Lily was, Lincoln ran so fast back to his room, you'd think he phased through the walls like his phantom girlfriend. He needed a moment to regain his breath, his roommate and baby sister just staring at him for a moment.

"Inkin!" Lily cheered upon seeing her older brother, holding her arms out to him.

"There...you are...Lily." He gasped as he walked over to give his baby sister a hug. Silas was still in a stunned silence after what he had just been informed of as Lincoln took the infant into his arms. "Thanks for watching her, Silas."

"...oh, uh...think nothing of it." He replied, sounding very distracted. The middle Loud didn't really notice, just relieved that he found his baby sister.

"So, you got to go on a little adventure today, eh?" He asked Lily, who giggled in response. "Well, I'm glad you had fun, but I think you could use a little quiet time." The Loud infant seemed a little salty about this, but she could tell she worried her big brother, so she nodded. He smiled to her and took her out of the room, leaving the minotaur to his thoughts.

* * *

A few minutes later, Lincoln had returned outside with Lily, playing with her by rolling a ball to her and letting her throw it was having all kinds of fun with this game as Lucy, Sibella and Mark watched...well, Lucy more watched from the corner of her eye, but still. The vampiress smiled at the pair, thinking it was such a sweet sight. Around that time, Milly had emerged from the school, carrying her custom built aerial drone under her arm and the controller in her other hand. "Good afternoon, earthlings." She called in greeting as she pondered where she should take off from.

"Hey Milly." Lincoln replied, the little martian getting the attention of his infant sister.

"Milly!" She said, which made the young alien turn her head.

"Oh. You brought the youngest of your family, did you?" She said, putting her drone done and walking over to Lily, who was smiling up at her. "You know, I've always been curious about something since I met Lisa…"

"What's that?" The white haired boy inquired.

"Is it possible that humans are far more intelligent the younger they are?" M-149 wondered aloud as she pulled a hand held martian device from her suit pocket. Lincoln blinked, wondering what she was planning as she tapped on the screen. "Tell me, youngling...what is this?" She turned the screen toward her, showing her a strange symbol of several circles, two triangles, and a few strategic dots.

"Laa ga." Lily babbled. Milly's eyes widened, looking at the image for a moment before changing the picture. This one was of a creature that looked like a cross between a salamander, a rhino, and a venus fly trap, colored dark pink and possessing six thick hooved feet.

"What about this?"

"Goo goo pala." Once more, she looked between the baby and the device in her hand, only this time several times.

"...and this one?" Milly inquired, changing the screen image a kind of fossil shaped like a spiral.

"Poo poo." Hearing that brought a deep frown to the martian's face.

"Did she say something wrong?" Lincoln asked, feeling pretty worried.

"No. She said it all too darn right." The irked et said in disbelief, which brought as laugh out of Sibella, Lucy and Lily all at once.

"Hehe. Truthfully, Milly, I think that was more Lily just saying what came to mind." Lincoln told her, trying not to laugh himself. "Lily isn't as smart as Lisa, but for her age, she's pretty darn smart." The Loud baby nodded as Lincoln got out his cell phone and handed it to her. Within a few seconds, Lily had logged into her own HeadSpace account.

"That is mighty impressive." Sibella said, walking over for a closer look.

"She needs help when it comes to posting stuff, but the fact she made her account by herself and remembers her username and password...that's amazing for a one year old." The white haired boy added, Lily looking all proud of herself.

"Hmmm. Perhaps there is still something to my theory…" Milly commented before she picked up her drone and moved away from them to practice flying as Lily handed the phone back.

"Well well. What have we here?" A voice from behind Lincoln inquired. The one son turned to look over his shoulder, while Lily leaned to the side. Ignatius was standing there, in his usual dark suit and tie, smiling down at them. In spite of the smile, something about him worried the infant, who quickly leaned back, to be hidden behind her brother.

"Oh. Hello Ignatius." The human boy responded in a friendly manner, standing up straight.

"Hello Ignatius." Sibella and Lucy both greeted him as well, Lucy blushing furiously.

"Good day to you all as well." He replied with a light bow to the two young ladies. "And who may I ask is this little lady?" The vampire teen boy asked, leaning a bit to look at Lily, who crawled behind Lincoln's legs to stay out of sight.

"She's my baby sister, Lily." He said, looking down at Lily with confusion and concern. He'd never seen her act like this before. She wasn't shy, and wasn't scared of strangers per se. "It's ok, Lily. His name is Ignatius. He's a student here, like me." He explained calmly and gently to her, crouching closer to her level. "Why don't you say hi to him?"

"No!" She yelled, burying her face into his side. Her brother blinked, as did his vampiric girlfriend and gothic sister, while the young Morvis' eyes widened in surprise.

"Lily...that's not nice…" Lincoln said with a lightly frown. "I'm sorry, Ignatius. I don't know what's gotten into her. She's not usually like this."

"Don't give it a second thought, Lincoln. I suppose I would look intimidating to one so young." Ignatius said, waving off the apology with a smile. He then got down on one knee to make himself seem not so large to her. "It's alright, young one. I just want to say hello." He held a hand out, but Lily just whined and toddled away, hiding behind Sibella now.

"Spella!" She cried out.

"Oh my." The vampiress said in surprise. She reached down and picked up the baby, gently cradling her in her arms. "Now now, Lily. It's ok. No one is going to hurt you." She said sweetly. "No one here will let them." The youngest of the Loud clan looked up at her, then over at Ignatius, who was walking calmly toward them.

"She's right, young lady. I won't hurt you." Lily locked eyes with him, mistrust clear on her face. This worried the vampire boy, as he felt it would harm his chances with Sibella. He decided to try something lowkey to calm her down and, while looking into her eye, attempted to hypnotize her with his gaze. "I just want to say hello. Don't you want to be nice and say hello back?" She just looked at him for a moment, then suddenly broke eye contact with him and hid her face in Sibella's shoulder. Ignatius was stunned. A baby so easily resisted being hypnotized by him!? 'It must be because I couldn't look into both eyes…' He thought to himself. Fortunately for him, neither of the Louds or Sibella noticed his attempt. Mark, however, had, but being a shy, non confrontational skeleton, he kept it to himself.

"I'm sorry, Ignatius, but I guess Lily just isn't in the mood to say hi." She said as she handed the baby back to Lincoln.

"It's not your fault, or anyone's really. I suppose, in time, she might warm up to me. Or perhaps we might just not meet again. Who can say what the future will hold?" He replied, taking what happened in stride. "But for now, I suppose I should be on my way, so's not to make her more uncomfortable than I already have. I will see you all later." He said as he headed back for the school, waving to them, still cool as a cucumber.

"Strange. Lily has never acted like that before." Lincoln commented as he looked at the now calmer Lily.

"Perhaps she isn't used to vampires like him." Lucy suggested, closing her book.

"She's fine with Sibella." The one son pointed out.

"Spella." Lily repeated, looking at the daughter of Dracula with a smile.

"And she didn't seem to have a problem with anyone else she met today. Even Silas." This made Lincoln fall into deep thought. What could be going on here? His musing was interrupted when he smelled something foul.

"Poo poo." Lily said, with Sibella backing away from them, trying not to breathe in or laugh.

"Yep. Was wondering when that was going to happen." Lincoln dead panned with a sigh as he picked up the ball they were playing with earlier and pocketed it. "I'll see you all later. Gotta go change Lily."

"Of course. See you later, Lincoln. Bye Lily!" Sibella called out, the one year old loud waving back to her as the two Louds returned to the school.

* * *

Silas wasn't in the room when Lincoln returned, a fact he was rather grateful for. While Lily and the minotaur seemed to get on alright in the brief moment he saw the two, he didn't want to subject his roommate to the smell of a soiled diaper while they were still in the strained neutrality stage. Last thing he wanted was for things to sour between them. Being quite used to changing her, it didn't take long for him to get her in a clean diaper and dispose of the dirty one. "There we go. All better, Lily." He said with a smile, Lily hugging him after she had sat up. "Aww. You're welcome, Lily." He chuckled a bit as he hugged her back before picking her up. "I don't suppose you're ready for a nap, are you?" He asked hopefully. She simply shook her head. "Of course. Silly of me to even consider the notion."

"Hehehehe." The baby snickered as she nodded in agreement.

"Well, in that case, how about a walk around the school? With me, this time." He offered. She nodded enthusiastically, which was all Lincoln needed to hear. He gave his baby sister the nickel tour of the school, starting with the upstairs, and soon bringing her down to the basement. As he was escorting her through the halls with her in one arm and a light orb in the other hand, the two of them could hear something from the music classroom. It wasn't music; more like a soliloquy. Unable to contain his curiosity, Lincoln peeked into the barely open door and what he saw surprised him. He saw Avalina, doing a solo performance of a play, though he didn't recognize which one. However, he could tell she was very good. Amazing in fact. He never knew that about her; but then, they never really talked or hung out, in or out of classes. She always seemed as eager to avoid Lincoln as Silas was. He never really understood it himself. Lily, wanting to get a better look, crawled down her brother and started to crawl into the room. "Lily? Get back here...don't disturb her." He said in a whisper. She didn't seem to hear or just simply ignored him as she crawled right up to the lamia, who paused right in the middle of her line to look down at the smiling infant. For a moment, it looked like she was about to smile, but when she glanced toward the door and noticed Lincoln standing there, her eyes widened in a panic, and then she screamed.

"Aaaahhh!" Lily blinked in surprise, wondering what scared her so much. "Get away from me, you little vermin!" She shouted, raising her tail to strike. Her older brother gasped and, acting on pure instinct, leaped into the room to grab Lily and get her out of harm's way. What he didn't see was that as he was rescuing the baby, her tail stopped for a microsecond to let him get out of dodge before slapping it against the ground. After Lincoln took a few breaths and a moment to register that she was safe, he sprang to his feet, glaring at Ava with outright fury.

"What is your problem!?" He yelled, Lily safe in his arms. "She's just a baby. You could have seriously hurt her!"

"She is nothing more than a pest. Vermin. Just like all humans; especially you!" She said with a sneer. Lincoln's head started to steam as his temper built, but Lily...she just looked confused. She may not necessarily understand all the words being said, but she knew how to read feeling very well...and something was off. She couldn't put her little finger on it, but she knew something wasn't right.

"How dare you!" The human boy snapped, fire in his eyes and starting to form in his hand.

"You better move along, human…" She warned him, her tail raised. "...and keep the whelp on a shorter leash, or I'll give you a lashing you won't soon forget…" The two glared at each other for nearly a minute, each side daring the other to make a move. Fortunately, Lincoln was able to calm himself enough to just walk away, despite still fuming with anger.

"I can't believe…" He tried to say as he stormed back down the hall with Lily in tow, but he was almost literally choking on his own rage. "That...I just...I'm going to report her to Miss Grimwood for that!"

"Nah! Nah!" His infant sister said frantically, shaking her head and tugging on his robe. He blinked as he looked down at her.

"What!? But Lily, she-"

"Inkin. No!" She said firmly, with an equally firm shake of her head. To him, this was rather surreal: his baby sister was telling him no, as if she were the older sibling and she were telling him he couldn't have any candy. He just stared at her with an open mouth for a moment before he spoke again.

"...alright, Lily...not this time...but next time she tries something like that, she won't get away with it." He said, leering back over his shoulder. Lily nodded, seeming to be ok with this. This made Lincoln wonder if Lily knew something he didn't. Then again, like he said earlier, she's pretty darn smart for her age. He would comply with Lily's request for now...but one false move, and he'd show Ava why you don't mess with a Loud…

* * *

Fortunately, the rest of Lily's stay at Grimwood's was peaceful and, for the infant, fun. As Lincoln promised, he didn't bring up what happened, not even to his friends after he found them in the common room. Tanis, Phanty and Winnie had a lot of fun as they took turns playing with Lily, while Lincoln, Elsa and Gila chatted with one another, keeping an eye on the baby from the easy chairs. It was a grand old time had by all. However, as with all good things, it had to come to an end sometime, and that time came before dinnertime. Lincoln got a text from his father saying they were finished for the day and he asked Lincoln to bring Lily back. He let Lily say her goodbye to all of her new friends before he picked her up and took her back to his room. Silas was just chilling on his bed, reading through his spellcrafting textbook when Lincoln opened the door. He glanced up for a moment, not saying a word, but then he spotted Lily. The baby looked back at him and smiled, waving to him. The minotaur lad chuckled inaudibly and waved softly back before returning to his book. Once he was on his side of the curtain, Lincoln pulled the diaper bag onto his shoulder, grabbed the bag of produce, and let Lily touch the teleporter orb. Within seconds, the two of them were in the living room of the Loud House, Lynn Sr smiling at them, in his chefs hat and apron. "Thank you so much, Lincoln." He said as he scooped up the baby. "We're still not done, but what's left to do won't require all hands."

"No sweat, Dad. I don't mind watching Lily, and she had a lot of fun with my friends."

"Is that true? Did Wiwy have fun at Gwimwood's?" He asked in a babyish voice, making her laugh before she nodded. "Well, I'm glad to hear that." He then noticed the sack in Lincoln's hand. "What's that about?"

"Oh, it's some fresh fruits and vegetables." Lincoln explained, handing it to his father. "Miss Grimwood asked me to help clear her garden and she said we could have them."

"Well, isn't that sweet of her? Be sure to thank her for me, would ya?"

"Of course. Well, I better get back, or I'll miss out on Scorpion Bowl night. Gosuki says it's one night you definitely don't want to miss out." The one son said as he touched the sphere again. "See you later, Dad. Love you."

"Love you too, Lincoln." He replied as his son disappeared. "...wait, Miss Grimwood doesn't use fresh produce?" He asked in confusion, though no one was around to answer him except Lily.


	7. Chapter 7: No Bones About It

No Bones About It

While there were a lot of students at Grimwoods and a handful of adults, the school was more than large enough to accommodate them all. This means there were plenty of places for a little peace and quiet. Back at the Loud House, a quiet place for Lucy would be the ventilation system. She didn't need to resort to that here, though she had taken the time to familiarize herself with the vents around the school. There were plenty of dark nooks and crannies for her to find inspiration in. Today, she was holed up in a little closet under the stairs, writing a letter to her boyfriend, Rocky. She had an email address, sure, but she always felt hand written letters were more personal. She had just finished describing her first magic lesson under Miss Grimwood when she heard something just outside the storage area. She opened the door a crack and peeked out to see what was up. What she saw was a frantic Mark, but he was missing the wig he usually wore. "Where is it!? Where is it!?" The boy of bone asked, on the verge of a panic attack.

"Is something wrong, Mark?" The gothic Loud asked, making the skeleton boy jump and nearly fall apart in his clothes.

"L...Lucy?" He asked, shaking quite a lot, making a rattling noise in the process.

"Sorry. I have a habit of startling people." She said, gently holding his shoulders to keep him from quaking so much. "What's the matter?"

"...I lost my hair…" The young skeleton answered with a whimper, his hands on top of his skull.

"Calm down. I'll help you find it, my friend." She said in a monotone, talking hold of his hand.

"T...thank you, Lucy…" He said as she started to lead him along. "My mother made me that hair...I can't lose it…"

"Where did you have it last?"

"...I had it as I was leaving class this morning…" Mark responded as he searched his memory. "...and I had it at lunch…"

"Let's try the dining room then." The raven haired little witch suggested, the duo making a beeline to the eating room. Unfortunately, when they got there, everything was already cleaned up and it didn't look like it was there. Nor was it in the hall between the entry hall and there. Mark was about to start crying, in spite of his lack of eyes, when Miss Grimwood's octopus butler came into the room. He was carting along what looked like a cleaning cart, though it was lacking a duster, and was being ridden by a large, brown and black spider. A spider sporting what looked like a new hair piece. "Excuse me." She said, stepping into the butler's path. The cephalopod paused, looking down at her with a raised eyebrow. "My apologies, but I think that spider has something belonging to Mark." She explained, reaching for the wig. The spider, Legs, glared at her and snapped at her fingers. This made the eight year old recoil back in order to avoid getting bitten. She wasn't about to give up, though. She glared right back into the arachnid's eyes through her hair, the two engaging in a sort of staring contest. With Legs distracted, Mark moved around the side of him and quickly took back the wig. "...you win." She said dully, turning and walking away from the spider, smirking lightly as Mark joined her.

"Thank you so much, Lucy…" He said, looking relieved as he put the wig back on.

"You're welcome." She answered, looking toward him. He seemed much more relaxed and at ease. "Your mother made that herself?" She inquired, being answered with a nod of his skull. "She did a great job."

"Yeah, she did." He said, with the first hint of pride the young Loud ever heard from his voice.

"You're proud of your mother."

"Yes...I'm proud of both of my parents…"

"Then how come you don't like to talk about them much?" The pale girl asked. Almost instantly, his face fell.

"...Because I don't want someone to figure out who my parents are." He answered, his eye sockets focused on the floor.

"...pardon my saying so, but that doesn't make any sense." Lucy said with a frown. "You just said you were proud of them…"

"And I am...which is why I don't want to mar their reputations by letting people know I'm their son…" The eight year old occult enthusiast stopped suddenly, grabbing his arm to force him to stop as well.

"What...?"

"...my parents are big deals back home, my father more so. Leader of the town, well respected for his leadership and scaring abilities...he's practically royalty." He elaborated, still not looking at her. "They're impossibly big shoes to fill...and my mother is renowned for her alchemy and potion crafting, as well as her craftmanship…" The skeleton boy sighed. "...but me...I'm nothing…especially compared to them."

"That's enough!" Lucy snapped, raising her voice (a rare occurrence for her). The bone boy shut his mouth the moment she had. "I don't want to hear you talking like that about yourself again."

"...yes, ma'am…" He replied meekly. "But...as their son...there are certain...expectations from me…"

"To follow in your father's footsteps?" Lucy suspected, which was confirmed with Mark's nod. "Do you want to?"

"I want to try, at least…" The young skeleton said, which sounded fair enough to Lucy. "...but I'm not scary...I can't scare anyone."

"Hmmm. Perhaps I can help you." The young goth offered. "I can scare people without even trying."

"...you really think you can help me?"

"Won't know until we try." She answered, patting him on the back as she led him down the hall.

* * *

A couple minutes later, the two young students found themselves out in the garden, hidden in some dead bushes. Lucy peeked out, seeing Tanis tending to the herbs and plants used for potions classes. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't consider targeting one as young as her for a scare, but the monster girls here usually liked being scared for fun. There shouldn't be an issue. She leaned back in and turned to the skeletal boy beside her. "Alright…" She whispered to him. "The first key element in scaring is surprise. If they don't know you're there, they're easier to surprise." She explained under her breath. "What you're going to do is sneak over to Tanis, quietly, and scare her."

"I...I'll try." He stammered as he crept out of the bush and started tip toeing over to the little mummy. So far, so good in Lucy's eyes. Mark's target was unaware of his presence, and he wasn't making a sound as he slunk across the grass. He made it right behind her, held his arms up, trying to look as mean as possible, and going "Boooooooo…." in a soft, moaning wail. Tanis paused in the act of trimming some foxglove, turning around to look at him. After about a second, she smiled.

"Hi there, Mark." She chirped. "Want to help me gather some herbs for Mr Van Ghoul?" The skeletal boy slumped as he saw his efforts were for nothing.

"Sure…" He mumbled sadly, moving in beside Tanis to aid her in pruning herbs.

"...this is going to be tougher than I thought." Lucy commented to herself, her head sticking up from the shrubbery.

* * *

"Ok. Perhaps we should have started with someone more high strung." Lucy said as she and Mark moved quietly through the hall. Their destination: Winnie and Ava's room. "Your first attempt wasn't bad, but the soft boo works better as a set up for the big scare. Used with a spooky ambiance to make your victim nervous and more jittery." She critiqued as they came to their door. "This time, once you're in position, go for gusto. Make a big noise to scare her."

"Right…" The young skull head replied. He peeked inside the room (which Lucy took as a good sign), seeing Winnie was laying on her stomach on her bed, working on some homework. More importantly, her back was to the door. Satisfied, Mark slunk into the room...then froze. Ava was curled up in the corner of the room he couldn't see, filing her long, pointed fingernails. When the skeleton entered the room, she looked up and blinked at him. He put a bony finger to his teeth, then pointed to Winnie. She got the message pretty quick and smirked, giving him a very small nod, pretending he wasn't there. He silently slid right up to the side of her bed, held his arms up just like before, and yelled "Rawr!" The werewolf girl's head perked up and she turned quickly, roaring as loud as she could right back at him. "Agh!" He screamed, backing up and going right to pieces.

"Hahaha! Good effort, Mark." She told him, laughing right along with Avalina. "You actually got my pulse up a little."

"T...thanks…" Mark stuttered as Lucy strode into the room, looking at the pile of Mark on the floor. She scooped her pupil up in her arms (relatively easily since his clothes held all of his bones) and said;

"Excuse us. I was just giving him some scaring lessons."

"Scaring lessons? Good stuff. I want in." Winnie said excitedly, snapping her book shut. "Math can wait."

"If you want." The gothic Loud replied, leaving the room while carrying the bone pile. "Winnie is right, though. That was much better."

* * *

"Ok, Mark. We've set you up with the easiest target possible." The werewolf girl told him in a hushed voice, hiding with the young man with low self esteem and the young witch. They were hidden just outside the entrance to the library. Their intended target: Lincoln, who was reading a comic book in there. Normally, he would read them in his room, but Silas, Ignatius and Elsa were all working on a project on his and the minotaur's room, so he decided to vacate to give them peace and give himself some quiet.

"Winnie's right." Lucy confirmed quietly. "Though he's grown more bold living here, he's still the easiest to scare of all my siblings, and the easiest here in Grimwood."

"Now, you got the sneaking part down, and you've got the idea when it comes to surprise. Good places to start. However, something that can seal the deal is a really scary face." Winnie continued, showing off her own scary face: sharp pointed fangs, feral looking eyes with a bloodthirsty look to them, her fur all matted, her claws extended.

"Yeesh...I see what you mean…" Mark responded shakily, shrinking away from her.

"Put it all together and try and scare my brother." The eight year old Edwin fan instructed him. The bone boy took a deep breath, then moved quick and quiet behind Lincoln's chair.

"Oh come on…" Lincoln grumbled, looking at the pages of his comic with a frown. "...Card Shark never even hit her with that shot...he did not." He ranted quietly.

"Rawr!" The skeleton boy yelled, suddenly popping up from behind the chair, using his fingers to pull his his mouth into some resemblance of a creepy face. The white haired boy looked up when he heard the attempted roar.

"Oh, hi Mark." He said casually with a light smile. Mark practically deflated when he saw that Lincoln wasn't scared, slumping over the back of the chair in defeat.

"I give up…" The dejected skele-child groaned, slowly sliding down the back of the chair.

"Now hold on there, bucko." Winnie said sternly, frowning as she emerged from their hiding place. "It's way too early to give up now."

"Winnie's right. Your father, most likely, had a long time to hone his scaring technique." Lucy added, following the werewolf girl. "You can't expect to become a scarer of his caliber in less than a day."

"But I can't even scare Lincoln…" Mark said sadly, the one son looking kind of insulted.

"It takes practice, buddy." Winnie said, patting him on the shoulder. "Time to discover your style and perfect it. and time you have plenty of."

"You're young, Mark. Given time, you'll come into your own." The raven haired witch agreed, kneeling beside him.

"...I don't know…" The skeleton boy sighed, looking at the floor. "What if I never become as scary as my father…?"

"Pardon my butting in, but do you really need to?" Lincoln asked, looking around behind the chair he sat in.

"Precisely." His younger sister confirmed with a nod. "If you want to try to reach his fear factor, or maybe even more so, then by all means. But don't think that you have no choice but to do so."

"Yeah. No one's putting a gun to your skull and telling you do it or else." Winnie interjected, patting him on his bony back. "You can do whatever you like."

"Like potions or alchemy." The middle Loud said. "I mean, you're the only one of the young, new students to be boosted to the advanced alchemy classes within your first few days." Mark's cheekbones turned a slight pink, in spite of the fact he shouldn't be able to blush.

"I guess so…"

"And you said your mother was good with that kind of stuff. You could still become a great alchemist like her." The pale young girl continued the thought, giving him a soft smile.

"Yeah...I could." Mark said, slowly getting to his feet. "...though, I think I will keep trying with my scaring technique."

"If that's what YOU want to do, bud, then go for it." Winnie told him.

"Thanks, Winnie, Lucy." He said, bowing his skull to each of them, almost losing his wig in the process. :And thanks for trying to teach me about being scary."

"My pleasure, Mark." The eight year old Loud responded as the skeleton departed from the library. Once he was gone, she turned to look at the werewolf beside her. "What do you think, Winnie."

"I think he has potential, but he sorely needs confidence." Winnie told her, her fists on her hips.

"Agreed. With a boost of confidence, and plenty of practice, he could be great." Lucy said with a firm nod. 'And I plan to help him however way I can.' She thought to herself, turning back to the entrance of the library. While she didn't know much about living up to a parent's legacy, as each of her siblings followed her own path, the feeling of not being good enough...it's one she had seen all the time, and even experienced herself. It's a terrible feeling, and one she didn't like seeing on anyone, anytime. But she felt he was on the right track. A little positive reinforcement and encouragement, and who knows where he could end up.

* * *

_AN: Just a little chapter to get Mark's story moving along, as well as setting up Lucy and Mark's relationship. It's short and quick, but I couldn't really think of much more to include, and hopefully it worked well enough. _


	8. Chapter 8: Unseen Circumstances

_AN: I had started this chapter before doing "No Bones About It", but hit a wall for it for a while, so I did that smaller chapter first. Here's hoping it was worth the wait. In addition, someone had suggested I include an invisible person. However, I cannot remember who recommended it or all the details and couldn't find the message again. If you were the one who asked about it, please let me know so I can properly credit you. Also, I was a little worried about this particular chapter, fearing I may have taken a step or two in a slightly too dark a direction. Perhaps I'm still kind of paranoid from my mistake with "Plan B", but let me know what you think. Here's hoping you enjoy the chapter._

* * *

Unseen Circumstances

It was Monday, after school hours, but Principal Huggins was hard at work in his office. Doing what, you may ask? He was meeting with the parents of a new student being enrolled into Royal Woods Elementary. The father was a short, thin man with very short black hair, a plain brown suit, and a soup strainer mustache, while the mother had neck length pink hair, wearing a grayish blue suit of her own, and was about as tall as her husband. The balding director of the school was looking over the application, his pointer finger stroking his own mustache. "Well, everything appears to be in order, Mr and Mrs Griffin." He said. "Though I do have a few concerns…"

"Concerns, Mr Huggins? What appears to be the problem?" The mild mannered man inquired with a tilt of his head.

"Well, right here, where it says medical conditions for your son, Melmond, it simply says invisible...what is that even supposed to mean?"

"Oh, it means just what it says." Mrs Griffin answered with a soft 'heh'. "Our son is invisible."

"...really?" He asked in disbelief, one eyebrow raised.

"Indeed. You see, my great, great, grandfather was the original Invisible Man." Mr Griffin explained, speaking as if he were commenting on the weather. "As strange as this is going to sound, the experiment that made him invisible had affected his very genetic structure, leading to the gene being passed on through my side of the family."

"It's quite rare, honestly. In fact, it hasn't activated until our own children, Melmond and Richard." Mrs Griffin continued, while Principal Huggins' mouth slowly opened, making him look like a cod. "However, while Richard has been able to manage his invisibility to the point where he could remain visible as long as he likes, Melmond...he's still working on it."

"I...See. Does the invisibility have...any side effects on him, like it did on the original Invisible Man?"

"Oh no, thank goodness." The short father said. "While the power of invisibility made my great, great grandfather lose his inhibitions and make him rather power hungry, we've noticed no sign of that in either of our children."

"Well, that is somewhat a relief." The by the book middle aged man said, looking down at the paper. 'Well, we have a zombie here...what harm could an invisible boy do? Besides, it looks like he meets the educational requirements.' He thought to himself. "Alright then, Mr and Mrs Griffin. It will take a day or two to get the paperwork through, but your son should be able to start on Wednesday."

"Thank you so much, Mr Huggins." The mother of the invisible kid said, shaking his hand as the two stood up. "We hope our son will enjoy his time here."

"As do we. Have a good day, Mr and Mrs Griffin." He replied as the two departed his office. Once he was sure they were out of range, he sighed, face palming. "First a zombie, now an invisible kid…" He groaned, face palming. "What's next? Bigfoot wanting a job!?"

"Does that mean there's an opening?" Came a voice from the window, coming from a very large, very hairy man creature with a resume in his hand.

"No!" The principal snapped.

"Ok! Ok! No need to get testy…" The sasquatch said as he backed away and made himself scarce. Principal Huggins sighed again, his face buried in his hands in exasperation. Then he suddenly looked toward the window again.

"Wait...what!?"

* * *

Wednesday comes around and Miss Johnson's class was getting ready to start a day of learning, with Zanya and Lincoln's closest friends chatting together. Most of them seem pretty relaxed, but Liam...he seemed panicked. "There's gonna be a pop quiz today…" he groaned, his head against his desk. "Ah just know it…"

"What makes you so certain of that?" Zanya asked the little farmboy.

"Ah just feel it...and it's gonna be a science quiz...mah weakest subject…"

"Well, if there were going to be a quiz today, it would be science…" Clyde confirmed. "Our last quiz was in social studies, so next in the pattern is science." Liam moaned in sorrow again just as Agnes strode into the room.

"Good morning, class. Today, we're in for a big surprise." She declared cheerfully. Liam, Zach and Girl Jordan all braced themselves for the possible bad news. "We have a new student starting today." She announced, much to everyone's surprise. "He's a little shy and nervous about being in a new school, so I want you all to make him feel welcomed to our classroom, ok?"

"Yes, Miss Johnson." Her class responded together.

"Very good. Allow me to introduce our new student, Melmond Griffin." After she introduced him, a strange young man peeked in from the doorway...or at least everyone thought he was a young man. His face was entirely wrapped in bandages and he had a baseball cap on his head covering his hair. He wore a long sleeve black and white striped shirt with thin white gloves over his hands, blue jeans and black sneakers. He nervously stepped into the classroom, all eyes on him.

"H...Hello…" He said, the wrappings on his face moving slightly as he spoke.

"Hello." Zanya was the first to reply with a smile.

"Er...are you alright, kid?" One of the boys in the back inquired.

"Yes, I'm fine…" Melmond replied meekly. "Why do you ask…?"

"I think they were concerned because of your bandaged, Mr Griffin." Their teacher explained to him. "And quite frankly, I am too."

"Oh...they're not there to help me recover...they're so I can be seen…" He told them all, which lead to many confused looks. Melmond sighed slightly and pulled off one of his gloves, revealing nothing underneath it. Most of his new classmates gasped at the sight, and even Miss Johnson looked shocked. "...I'm invisible...I can't help it, but I am..."

"Coooool." Rusty finally broke the silence.

"How...how did that happen?" The teacher inquired, slightly unnerved.

"It's...a bit of a lengthy explanation, but I'll try and keep it short. I'm descended from the Invisible Man, and the experiment that made him invisible affected his genes, which led to invisibility to run in the family. However, it's a recessive gene, so it only triggers rarely. To my knowledge, my older brother and I are the only ones affected by it, though I can't really control it."

"So...you're stuck being invisible?" Clyde asked curiously. Melmond nodded in reply.

"Yeah, though I am working on getting it under control." He said. "Hopefully, I can get to the point where I can become visible at will, like my brother."

"Well, isn't that fascinating?" Miss Johnson said with a smile. "Well, why don't you take a seat anywhere and we can get started." The invisible boy nodded again, moving over to sit behind Liam. "Before we begin properly, I have an announcement to make. I had a pop science quiz planned for today-" She declared, which got a chorus of groans from the classroom.

"Ah knew it…" Liam muttered under his breath, his face meeting his desk again.

"However, as we have a new student, I've decided to reschedule the quiz for a later date, to give us time to review the material again." This new brought some sighs of relief from her classroom.

"Whew…" The little farm boy wiped his forehead before turning to Melmond. "Pardner, you just made yerself a friend fer life." If they could see his face, they would have seen the look of confusion on his face before the class started officially.

* * *

Sometime later, at lunch, Lincoln's friends and Zanya had almost immediately invited Melmond to join them at their table. It was a little crowded, but they managed to make it work with an extra chair or two and a little proper lunch placement. "So, how are you liking it here so far, Melmond?" Girl Jordan asked, trading her chocolate milk for Zach's can of Prof Pepper.

"The school seems nice." He replied quietly, but not too quiet that he couldn't be heard. "I mean, I get some looks sometimes, but no one really said anything."

"Yeah, this place is pretty nice." Zanya told him, though she decided to refrain from telling him about her first couple weeks at RWES. She didn't want to put the school in a bad light for him when he was having a positive initial experience. From her backpack, she pulled out a three cheese sandwich. "I'm Zanya, by the way."

"And I'm Clyde." The bespectacled boy introduced himself, which was followed by the rest of Lincoln's friends: Stella, Zach, Rusty, Liam, and Girl Jordan.

"Pleased to meet you all." Melmond replied to them, a smile evident through his bandages.

"So, Melmond, do you like video games?" Rusty asked, swapping his bag of sour cream and onion chips for Liam's cheese puffs.

"Kinda. I only play MMOs, really. I like being able to play with others." He answered as he started to eat the chicken sandwich he bought from the cafeteria.

"No fooling? Which ones?" Zach inquired with an interested tone.

"Oh, a couple different ones. Most of them casually. EYE Online, Star Journey Online, Battleground…" The invisible boy said, counting off some of his favorite online games. "Though I do play WOF more seriously."

"You play Fantasycraft too? Cool." Zach said with a big smile. "So do we."

"Awesome. Are you guys good?"

"Our clan is pretty good, though we had lost one of our leaders a few months back." Rusty answered, looking kinda glum about it.

"What happened?" Melmond inquired, looking somewhat concern.

"Lincoln got chosen to be part of a student exchange program with Miss Grimwood's School, and they don't have internet there." Clyde answered. "We still see and talk to him from time to time, but he can't really play as often as we used to."

"Don't suppose yer looking for a clan…" Liam asked hopefully.

"Sorry. Already in the SteamDriven clan." He replied with a shrug. "But maybe we can forge an alliance, so we can all play together."

"That'd be great." The African American boy said enthusiastically.

"What else are you interested in?" Girl Jordan asked, hoping to steer the conversation in a direction everyone could get involved in.

"Well...not a lot, really. I like to read, love cartoons…" Melmond said, a bit of a blush getting through his bandages from all the attention he was getting. "...and building with Blockees…"

"Blockees? I love those things." Stella said, smiling brightly. "What have you built with them?"

"...I have a few pictures on my phone…" he said, pulling out his cell phone and showing them the gallery. Their jaws dropped at what they saw. The first picture showed a castle the size of a television, complete with surrounding wall, little guards, and a working drawbridge, all made with the little interconnecting building blocks. The next image showed a spaceship from Space Skirmish, surprisingly accurate for its scale. What followed was a large chest for holding and organizing his Blockees (made of the blocks themselves), , and finally, the upper half of a T Rex. It looked like it was still a work in progress, and it was a big project, seeing it was almost a quarter of Melmond's size.

"Wow...these are incredible." Girl Jordan commented, an expression of awe on her face.

"It must have taken you a long time to build those." Zach said.

"Oh yes. The dinosaur has taken nearly a year to get that far, mostly because I'm having trouble getting Blockees of the right colors." Melmond told them. Zanya just hung back and listened as she ate her lunch, smiling at all of them. The zombie girl was pleased to see them all becoming friends. She had been in Melmond's shoes, of course; being an unusual child new to school. She wanted him to have a more positive first day than she had, and by the look of it, he certainly was. The rest of lunch, before recess, was spent with Clyde and Stella entertaining the invisible lad with stories of their past adventures at the school.

* * *

"So, the kid is invisible?" Lana asked, tilting her head to Zanya, looking puzzled. The girl from Grimwood had told the Loud siblings about their new friends while they waited for Vanzilla to pick them up. Needless to say, the girls were intrigued.

"Yeah." The undead child answered with a nod. "Though only his body is invisible. The clothes on his back and bandages on his face aren't."

"Fascinating." Lisa commented, rubbing her chin. "How is it possible?"

"He said that he was related to the Invisible Man, and that whatever caused him to become invisible affected his genes." Zanya responded.

"Hmmm. Under normal circumstances, I would scoff at that claim. However, I have seen a lot of late that has made me reconsider what I'd call impossible." The little genius said.

"Wow. A kid who can stay invisible...lucky." The tool savvy twin said with a sigh.

"It's not so lucky if he's good looking." Lola retorted, before she quietly asked Zanya, with a tone filled with hope. "Is he good looking?"

"No idea. Invisible, remember?"

"Nuts…" The prissy twin grumbled under her breath.

"And technically, the young man remains visible if he is clothed and wrapped in bandages." Lisa interjected, looking to her animal loving older sister. "In order to be completely invisible, he would have to disrobe completely."

"I fail to see the problem. Not like anyone would see him."

"...touche." Lisa responded, conceding the point just as Rita pulled up in Vanzilla. The older Loud siblings were already in the car, as well as Lily.

"Hi Mom!" Lana and Lola exclaimed before they jumped in.

"Greetings, Mother." Lisa said in salutation.

"Afternoon, Mrs Loud." Zanya said, stepping into the car.

"Hi kids. Have a good day?" The Loud mother asked, smiling at her youngest children and their zombie guest.

"Yeah!" The twins chirped, while the ghoul girl nodded in agreement.

"My day was sufficiently enjoyable as well."

"So, what was it you were saying earlier, Lynn?" Luan asked, turning to the sporty sister.

"Where was I...oh yeah! Well, I heard we got a new student in school today." Lynn explained, lounging in her seat. "I never got to meet him. Wasn't in any of my classes. But the girls in the grade over me were going all gaga over him."

"On his first day?" Lori inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Must be quite the looker." The family comedian theorized.

"The way they went on about him, you'd think he was Hugh." The rough and tumble teen commented. Suddenly, the Loud sisters (minus Lily) sighed in a dreamy manner, looking kind of out of it.

"Hugh…" They said in unison. Zanya blinked, looking around at each of them in confusion.

"Don't ask." Lisa said, being the first to regain her senses.

"Well, anyway, isn't that something?" The daughter of the detective said, snapping the rest of the girls out of their trances. "My class got a new student too."

"An invisible one, from what Zanya said." Lana threw in her two cents.

"Invisible?" Rita inquired, looking very confused.

"Well, it's like this…" Zanya started to say, about to re-relate the story Melmond told her the rest of the Louds in the car.

* * *

A few days later, at Royal Woods High School, Lori and her classmates had just finished a grueling gym class. The daily exercises, followed by a mile run around the track. While Lori was in pretty good shape, it left her exhausted as she and her friends, Becky and Carol, returned to the locker room. "Yeesh...what was with that run…?" The eldest of the Loud children complained as she slumped onto a bench.

"And right after all those sit ups and push ups…" Becky included, going to get a few towels for her and her friends.

"At least we only have to make that run once a year." Carol said optimistically, pulling off her gym shirt.

"Thank goodness…" Lori sighed, shaking her head as she started to get undressed herself.

"So, how are you and Bobby doing? Have you seen him lately?" Carol inquired, waiting for their red headed to get back before she would get ready to hit the showers.

"We're doing great." Lori said with a smile. "I saw him just two days ago, though only for a little bit."

"You drove all that way, just to see him for a few minutes?"

"Oh no. My brother, Lincoln, set up an easier way for us to get together months ago."

"Oh yeah. You told me about your brother going to another school, and learning magic. I gotta say, I never thought it was the real deal."

"I thought the same thing at first." Lori admitted with a chuckle. "But then Lincoln came home and levitated Lola and Lana all around the room, and my mind was changed."

"Yeah. That would do it." Her blonde haired friend replied, the both of them laughing softly. Just as Becky had returned, the locker room was suddenly filled with screams, originating from the shower room. The three teens turned in shock to see a group of their classmates running from the chamber screaming, some with towels wrapped around them and most with shampoo still in their hair.

"What's going on?" The eldest Loud sister asked, getting to her feet.

"There's someone in there!" A frantic brunette screamed, one hand on a towel draped over her and the other pointing from where they had all come. "Taking pictures!"

"Carol, Becky, cover me…" Lori instructed as she stormed toward the room, her hands clenched into fists. "Someone else, go find the coach." One of the few ladies there who had already changed was already headed out the door. She stomped into the showers, her eyes scanning the space from corner to corner. She intended to turn the intruder into a human pretzel...but there was no one there. She blinked, moving a little further into the shower room, her friends watching the only way in and out. "...are you sure you weren't imagining things?" She asked in annoyance, turning to look at all the soaked and scared girls. While she was facing the exit, the water on the floor behind her was suddenly disturbed, as if someone was stepping through it.

"...I saw a phone…" The same brunette answered shakily. Lori raised an eyebrow at her, then screamed. She had felt a sharp pinch on her backside. In retaliation, she swung a left hook around behind her...but not only did she hit nothing, she saw nothing. However, she KNEW she felt something.

"What the hey…?" She muttered, looking around in confusion. "What's going EEK!" She screeched, having felt something touch her side. She threw another punch, but she had nothing to aim at, so all she hit was air. There was something in here, that was certain. The question was what? As Lori was trying to deck the source of her classmates' fright and her anger, the female gym teacher came rushing into the locker room in a state of alarm.

"What's going on!?" She asked, an angry look on her face.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." Lori responded, looking toward the teacher. "They said there was someone in here, taking pictures. " She explained to her, not really noticing the unseen force fiddling with the back of her bra.

"Lori!" Becky screamed, pointing behind her, just as it came undone as if on its own. The authoritative blonde Loud gasped, throwing one arm around her chest to keep her undergarment on, and thrusting her elbow back behind her. This time, she connected with something solid, hearing a pained "agh!" behind her. She looked back as saw a small trickle of blood in midair, but nothing else. This made not just Lori, but all the teens present scream, the unseen intruder rushing past Lori and through the crowd. No one really saw it coming, so no one could stop them.

"What the sam hill just happened!?" The phys ed teacher asked, looking utterly lost.

"An invisible pervert is what happened…" Lori responded, her adrenaline winding down as she redoes her bra, trying to think rationally in spite of her well lit short fuse. She only knew of one invisible person: the guy Zanya met recently. However, some things didn't make much sense to her. While she never met the kid, she imagined he couldn't be quite as tall as her. Plus, he had to be...what, eleven, twelve? Too young to be that interested in girls in THAT manner. But by the same token, apart from Lisa, who else could become invisible? And that was certainly not Lisa. Her musings were interrupted by the thought she would be late for class if she didn't hurry., so she rushed back to get changed. She could hear the teacher calling for school security, but she thought she would do a little investigating of her own after school.

* * *

A little while later, out in front Royal Woods Elementary, Zanya was bidding goodbye to the Loud sisters (as she had soccer practice), leaving them to wait for their ride as she headed toward the soccer field. En route, she ran past Melmond, who was just standing by himself next to the flagpole out front. She skidded to a stop and turned to look at him. "Hey, Melmond. Waiting for your ride home?"

"Hi Zanya. Just waiting for my big brother." He replied, sounding slightly blue. "He's coming over from the Middle School."

"Oh? Which grade is he in?" She inquired curiously.

"The 9th grade…" He answered, before adding almost under his breath. "...again."

"Hmm? What do you mean?" The invisible boy started to sweat a bit, his bandages getting damp. He didn't think she would have heard that.

"It's...it's just...he had to repeat the grade...twice." He stuttered nervously.

"Oh dear...I'm sorry to hear that."

"It wasn't his fault, though. We've had to move a lot, because of my father's job. I've had to repeat fourth grade myself once because of that…"

"What does your father do?"

"He's a safety supervisor for a big construction and demolition company. It pays really well, but it means we rarely stay in one place for more than a year or two before he's needed on a new site. I think the longest we stayed in one state was three years, since all the jobs he was needed at were relatively close."

"...that must be rough, constantly on the move…"

"It is...but we're getting used to it...for the most part." Melmond continued. "Dad says he's trying to work with the company to allow use to settle in someplace permanently, but no luck so far…"

"Call me a pessimist, but I don't think they'll ever manage it." The invisible flinched when her heard this new voice, the zombie girl turning to see who had spoken. Standing behind her, slightly to the side, was a tall, handsome teenaged boy with combed back black hair, wearing a dark blue polo and jeans, with red and black sneakers. He had bronzed skin, pearly white teeth, diamond like eyes, and a slender physique. About the only imperfection Zanya could find on him was a few patches of dried blood around his nose. "Hey bro."

"Hi Drake…" The younger of the Griffin boys replied.

"Hmmm. And who's this little lady?" Drake asked, looking to Zanya.

"Zanya Talon. Pleased to meet you." She answered, giving him a light smile.

"Likewise. Come on, Melmond. Let's get a move on." The older of the two said, somewhat hastily, taking his brother by the hand for a moment as he led him away. The undead child saw this as pretty odd, but she didn't have time to ponder his behavior. She had to get to soccer practice, and fast. "Mel, what did I tell you about trying to make friends around here?" He suddenly asked his little brother as soon as they were out of possible ear shot.

"...that it's pointless, since we'll just end up moving so quickly?" Melmond responded dully, looking at his own shoes.

"Exactly." Drake said before putting his hand on the invisible child's shoulder. "Look, bro. I'm not saying it to be mean or to bring you down...I'm just being realistic here. We aren't going to be here that long, so what's the point in making friends when you'll just be saying goodbye and never see them again?"

"...you don't know that for certain…"

"Trust me. I've heard the same spiel from Dad for years. Nothing's going to change. We'll never be in one place long enough to make any lasting relationships, so why bother?" He shrugged a bit. "Not saying you shouldn't have fun with the local yokels. Just don't get attached to them." The younger of the Griffin boys just sighed as he walked alongside his older, visible brother, who had something of a smile on his face. The two came to a pause at an intersection, checking to see if any cars were coming. At that exact moment, Vanzilla pulled up beside them at the stop sign. Lori was sitting in the passenger seat beside her father, glancing out the window between text messages. She noticed Drake and Melmond standing on the curb, her attention going right to the older brother. She couldn't help notice how handsome he was. Kinda reminded her of Hugh, except not quite as enchanting. Drake looked down the other side of the street and his eyes met Lori's. He recognized her in an instant and looked away in a panic. This made the oldest sister blink in surprise.

'Hmmm. He must be shy.' She thought to herself, turning her attention to Melmond, who was looking at his brother in concern. '...Something about him is familiar…' She mentally said, frowning lightly at the bandaged boy. She didn't get a chance to really ponder this, as Lynn Sr had driven off. Meanwhile, Drake watched as the beat up old mini van pulled away, looking at the license plate.

'This is bad…' He thought to himself, a bit of a scowl on his face. 'She recognized me…' He continued on his train of thought, before he interrupted himself. 'But I was invisible. Absolutely invisible. She couldn't have seen my face...but why take chances? I better pay her a visit later...make sure we have an understanding.' He nodded silently before taking another look up and down the street, crossing with his confused younger brother after.

* * *

Several hours later, late into the night, all was silent on Franklin Avenue, even in front of the aptly named Loud House. All the inhabitants of the house, humans, monster, and animals, were all fast asleep in their respective beds. All was serene and peaceful. So peaceful, you could hear a pin drop...or hear a bobby pin get inserted into a lock. Though the front porch was as barren as the streets, there was clearly the sound of a lock being picked. In a matter of seconds, the lock clicked and the door slowly creeped open. The family dog, Charles, lifted his head when he heard the creaking. He frowned when he saw the open door, trotting over for a look outside. He didn't see anything and, being too tired to really investigate any further, simply nudged the door closed and curled up right in front of it. To the sleepy watchdog, it was just the wind opening the door. In reality, however, an unseen trespasser had slipped in before Charles had investigated and had already snuck their way up the staircase. A pair of shoe shaped imprints appeared on the hall rug as the hidden intruder paused at the top of the stairs. Though he couldn't be seen, he was looking up and down the hall. Two doors were partially open at either end, one leading to the bathroom, the other to Lincoln's old room. He wasn't sure where to go, so he had to guess.

The see through individual crept across the hall, opening the door to Lynn's room a crack. The ponytailed athlete was snoring loudly on her bed, her head against the wall as if she had collapsed there and just drifted off. He quietly shut the door and walked up the corridor toward the bathroom. He tried the door on the right first, opening the way into Luna and Luan's room. The rock and roll sister was in a deep sleep, headphones playing hard rock as she snoozed, while the family joker was occasionally spitting out puns as she slept. He closed the portal again, seemingly not having found what he was looking for. He finally tried the door on the left; Lori and Leni's room. 'Bingo…' Drake thought as he saw the source of his 'problems' sleeping in her bed, dreaming dreams of her and Bobby's future together. 'Ok Drake...all you have to do is make sure you leave her a message...keep your mouth shut, unless you or your little brat sisters want to be hurt.' He schemed, leering at the eldest sister. 'And none of them will know what hit them.' Just then, the door to Lincoln's room opened further, Zanya emerging in her pajamas. The zombie girl had been hit with a case of the late night munchies, so she thought she was head down to the kitchen for a little snack. As she approached the stairs, she noticed Lori and Leni's door ajar.

"That's not right." She muttered, as she knew Lori liked having that door closed at night. She decided to shut it for her real quick, walking over to passage to the room she shared with the gold hearted fashionista. When she got there, however, she bumped into something solid. "Huh?" The undead girl was confused, even more so when she felt an invisible force cover her mouth and something wrap around her neck. She screamed, but no sound came out as she struggled against seemingly nothing.

"Keep your damn mouth shut…" A low, harsh, growling voice warned her. "You scream and I'll beat you so hard, you'll feel it for the rest of your life. Do you understand me?"

"Let go!" Zanya demanded, though her words were muffled by an unseen hand.

"Do. You. Understand. Me!?" He asked again, even more furiously, something pressing harder against Zanya's throat. Her eyes suddenly started to glow bright green.

"I said…" She growled in return. "...let…" She reached back and grabbed her assailant by what she thought was his head. "...GO!" She screamed as she hurled him over her shoulder, her great strength sending him flying clear across the hall and right through Lincoln's window, and across the fence to fall right into Mr Grouse's yard. The sound of her screams and the shattered window was enough to wake up almost every member of the family, the sisters all peeking fearfully out the door. The girl from Grimwood was breathing heavily, her eyes still shining as she ran down the hall to look out the window.

"Zanya? What-?" Lori started to ask, but she was cut off by her answer.

"We have an intruder!" She declared, her eyes scanning the yards below. Unfortunately, she couldn't see any sign of the trespasser she threw, though he was limping away from the scene. He was not expecting to encounter someone with her power inside the house and decided to cut his losses for the moment. The ghoul girl's response sent the girls into a panic; Lola shut and locked her door, Lynn grabbed several bats, field hockey sticks, and a pair of nunchucks with intent to hand them out to the others, and Leni running downstairs to get their parents. Within a matter of minutes, Mr Loud and Zanya were searching the front and back yards while Rita called the police and the armed older sisters searched the house. Once they were all satisfied that the trespasser was gone and they gave their report to the police, Lori, Leni, Luan, Lynn and Zanya all returned upstairs, very shaken.

"I don't get it...how did they get in?" Leni wondered out loud. "Dad locked the door."

"I have a better question. Why didn't Charles bark or anything?" Lynn inquired, looking and sounding angry.

"Probably because he couldn't see them." Zanya answered, her adrenaline rush wearing off and leaving the poor girl shaking slightly. "The suspect was invisible…"

"Invisible? Are you sure?" Lori asked in a tone of alarm.

"Positive. I could feel them try and choke me out, but I couldn't see what was choking me."

"Do you think it's the same see through guy you told us about before?" The kindly blonde asked her older sister.

"Probably...I mean, how many other invisible people are there?"

"You're not saying it's Melmond, are you?" The green skinned undead girl asked with a frown.

"Can you prove it's not?" The hot tempered brunette interjected.

"Yes." The zombie child replied without hesitation. "Melmond isn't as tall as the guy grabbing me, and the voice didn't sound right. Not only that, but I could feel cloth around my neck and the back of my head. Only Melmond's skin is invisible."

"I agree with Zanya." Lori said, irked at being interrupted. "When I hit the guy in the locker room, he was almost as tall as me. I think I saw Melmond on the way home. He's too short to be the invisible pervert."

"Pardon my interjection, elder siblings and guest." Lisa commented as she emerged from her room, calm as you please. "But I believe I can help settle this debate."

"Oh yeah. Lisa has cameras in the hall, doesn't she?" The Talon girl pointed out with a slight smile.

"But if the guy was invisible, what good would that do?" Lynn asked.

"Allow me to show you." The genius toddler answered, motioning them to follow her into her room/lab. The teen Loud sisters and Zanya all filed into the room and huddled around Lisa's computer as she started typing. "Let's see...hallway camera." She muttered as she brought up the footage from several minutes earlier. All looked calm, until Lori and Leni's door opened seemingly on it's own. "There we go." The super intelligent four year old said, just as Zanya entered frame. "Now we just need to turn on the thermal lens." A few key strokes and the image changed. Once where there was nothing was a human like shape colored red, orange and yellow, putting another (colored yellow, green and blue) into a choke hold.

"How can we see them now, Lisa?" Leni asked, a look of confusion.

"Thermal vision allows us to detect body heat, which can't be masked even by invisibility." The second youngest, but smartest of the children explained. "As you can see by our unseen vagabond's clear signature and Zanya's cooler body temperature."

"And that is clearly not Melmond." The zombie girl stated simply. "...but I think I have an idea of who it may be...I'll need to be sure though."

* * *

The next day, inside the Elementary School, the invisible boy was collecting his school books from his locker at the start of the day. He felt pretty nervous that day. He had found his brother's bed empty the previous night when he had gone to the bathroom, and that worried him to no end. The fact Drake was back in bed when he woke up in the morning did little to ease his fears, especially with the dirt and mud on his shoes. Melmond shakily closed his locker, revealing Zanya, Lori, Lana, Lola, and Lisa standing right there. He jumped in fright when he saw them. "Ah! Uh...oh...good morning." He said to them, his heart beating faster than it ever had before.

"Morning, Melmond." Zanya said, in a tone and with an expression that was difficult to read. "We need to talk a moment."

"Uh...sure. What about?"

"Someone broke into our house last night." Lori started to explained, looking very stern.

"Oh no...that's terrible." Melmond said sympathetically. "Was anyone hurt?"

"Just the intruder." Zanya replied to him. "After I literally threw them out."

"But the break in isn't the only problem here." Lisa commented, moving closer to the see through lad. "The problem is that the intruder was capable of rendering themselves unseen to the human eye."

'You mean…?" He started to ask, panic rising in his voice. "I swear, it wasn't me!"

"Calm down, Melmond. We know." Zanya told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "But we need to ask: where was your brother last night?" The young man flinched when the zombie girl asked that.

"I...don't know…" He admitted fearfully.

"Don't know, or won't say?" The pageant princess asked, cracking her knuckles.

"I don't know! I swear! His bed was empty last night!"

"Little snitch…" Drake muttered with disgusted, watching from nearby. 'I knew keeping an eye on him was a good idea...but now I need to do something desperate…' He thought angrily, looking at each of the Loud sisters. His eyes focused right on Lola in the back of the group.

"His bed was empty?" Lori asked, wanting confirmation from the young man, which he gave with a nod.

"Did you notice anything else out of the ordinary?" Lisa questioned him, keeping a calm monotone.

"Well...I noticed he had dirt and mud on his shoes...fresh dirt and mud." Melmond answered meekly. He slowly looked up at all the girls before him as they looked to one another...but he also saw something else. A blurred outline approaching them from behind. Being constantly invisible himself, he had gotten very used to seeing invisible things. "Look out!" He cried, but it was too late. Lola was suddenly grabbed from behind and lifted off the ground. This sight was enough to send some of the other students in the hall running away screaming.

"Ack!" She gasped, wriggling and kicking in mid air.

"Lola!" Lana exclaimed, making a move to go for her.

"Stay back!" Drake barked, stepping back with the prissy twin. "You want her back in one piece, you do as I say…"

"Put her down, Drake…" Zanya demanded, her hands clenched into fists, just like Lori's.

"I don't know what you're talking about…"

"Do not play games, Mr Griffin. We've already ascertained that you were our unwelcome visitor the previous evening." Lisa told him, looking and sounding unamused. "And we have more than enough evidence to take to the police." She added in an attempt to bluff him into releasing her older sister.

"Pfft. You have nothing and you know it." He scoffed, calling her bluff, a move Lisa didn't expect. "And you won't have her back unless you agree to my demands."

"...very well, I concede that we have no solid evidence." The super smart toddler confessed. "However, you've made two fairly major mistakes here and now. First, you've pretty much admitted to us your true identity."

"...and the second-OUCH!" He suddenly yelled in pain as Lola sank her teeth right into his arm. Her bear trap like bite was more than enough to make him drop the little firecracker.

"Lola is a biter." The second youngest sister finally said with a smirk as Lola ran over to join her twin and Lori and Zanya dove at the invisible neer do well. Unfortunately, Drake had already opted to make tracks, so they missed completely.

"What's going on here!?" Principal Huggins demanded to know as he finally arrived on the scene, having been alerted by the terrified students earlier.

"Principal Huggins, an invisible field had just attempted to take Lola hostage." The super genius of the family explained, looking very serious. "And we suspect he is the same individual who successfully broke into our home the previous night."

"And the girl's locker room at the high school too." Lori added.

"Quite. In such a case, we require your assistance in order to keep him from escaping." The school principal looked aghast at what he had heard, as did Melmond. The principal ran off to call the police, while the Louds and Zanya got together to make their plan.

"Ok...we're going to need to help find the guy before the police get here, or who knows what he could do…" Lori said quietly.

"Or what he plans to do if he escapes." Zanya added. "But how do we find someone we can't even see?"

"...I have an idea." Lana piped up, a smile spreading across her face. "I saw a cartoon once where this guy was invisible in the army and giving his sargent a hard time. Well, when the sargent chased him through a field of flowers, the hero got covered in flower petals…"

"...that is nice, Lana, but we don't have any flowers on hand." Lisa said in a deadpan tone.

"No...but Lola has glitter." The tom boy twin said, grinning to her more beauty obsessed sister.

"Say...that's not a bad idea." Lola commented with a grin.

"I concur. The glitter will stick to our unseen threat, as he is still solid in spite of being invisible." The young genius agreed with a smile.

"Alright, Lola. Pass the glitter. And while we look around for Drake, everyone stick together." Lori instructed. "We don't want to give him a chance to catch any of us unaware."

"How will we know where to look?" The pageant princess asked as she handed out bottles of glitter to the others.

"She does bring up a good point. If he doesn't make a move against us around us, we won't be able to spot him…"

"...I can see him." Melmond spoke up softly. All eyes suddenly turned to him. "I've spent the last few years invisible...I've gotten used to seeing myself invisible in the mirror, to the point where I can see a faint sort of outline of someone trying to hide in plain sight."

"You'd be willing to help us find your own brother?" Lana asked with a raised eyebrow. "And not help him?"

"The way I see it, I can do more help for him by stopping him…" The younger of the Griffin boys said. "He's often caused a little trouble with his invisibility...bent a few rules...never anything seriously wrong. But lately...these last few years, of the few things I've seen myself, he's been crossing the line...I didn't say anything at the time because, well, I guess I hoped each time it was just a one time thing…"

"...yeah, I could kind of understand that." Lori said, frowning but understanding as well. "No one wants to think their own brother or sister are doing something really wrong…"

"If you want to help, Mel, it would be appreciated." Zanya said, smiling encouragingly at him.

"But if he sees him, he'll try and avoid us even more." Lana reasoned.

"I have an idea regarding that, if Melmond is willing." Lisa said, turning to the descendant of the Invisible Man. "If you were to discard your hat, wrappings, gloves, shirt, shoes and socks, you could stand among us without being seen or heard."

"...I guess I could do that…"

Meanwhile, Drake was creeping his way toward the cafeteria doors, nursing the bite wounds he had gotten from Lola. 'Little brat...oughta knock some teeth out of her big mouth on principle…' he thought furiously. 'But first things first. Better scram before they call the police. They might bring a K9…' He tried the large doors leading to the lunchroom, but the handles refused to budge. The doors were locked, of course, as it wasn't anywhere near lunch time. He grumbled his displeasure on discovering this, but things were about to get worse for him. When he turned around, he spotted the group hunting for him headed down the hall. He wanted to just swear, but he needed to keep quiet, sneaking back into a corner in the hopes of waiting them out. What he doesn't know was that Melmond was moving in the very center of the pack, covered by Lori and Lana. The younger of the Griffins almost immediately spotted Drake lurking in the corner. He patted Lana on the shoulder, then quietly turned her head to look at that corner. The invisible teen blinked when the mechanically inclined sister raised her glitter bottle and squeezed the soft plastic, sending a spray of shiny particles at the corner. Drake's eyes widened and jumped into the air, holding onto the top of the nearest locker with one hand and the top of the door frame with the other. The glitter gel splattered against the wall and down to the floor.

"Dang it. I missed." The mud loving twin said, snapping her fingers. Her target then fell from his hiding place, getting gel all over the soles of his shoes before he ran for it.

"Look!" Zanya exclaimed, pointing to the footprints that were suddenly appearing as their quarry made a mad dash down the hall.

"Follow those prints!" Lori instructed as she led the charge after Drake. However, when they reached a three way intersection in front of the library, they found a pair of shoes covered with gel all over the bottoms right in the center.

"I suppose it was too much to expect him to be fool enough to keep the shoes on." Lisa commented with a sigh.

"Which way did he go?" The zombie girl asked, glancing up and down the two remaining paths.

"To the right." Melmond whispered, barely able to see the blur that was his brother in the distance as he rounded a bend. Drake considered hiding in one of the classrooms, but he suspected running into a full classroom would draw a lot of attention to him. He needed to find an empty classroom, or something. Unfortunately for him, he was completely clueless about the layout of the school, so he was just running blind, with the posse hot on his heels. The next thing he heard would only make things all the more difficult.

"Students and teachers of Royal Woods Elementary. A lockdown drill is now in effective. Any students left out in the hall, take shelter in the nearest room immediately, but do not panic. This is only a drill."

"Son of a…" Drake growled as he heard doors lock all around him. Now he was trapped like a rat. 'Well, at least it's just a drill. No cops involved. Just need to wait it out.' He thought to himself as he ducked between a pair of rows of lockers and ducked down. Fortunately for him, between the shadows created by the lockers and his keeping low to the ground, the group walked right past him. He watched them as they moved by and spotted a pair of pants walking among them. "...you little bas-!" He started to yell, rising angrily from his hiding place. His rage alerted the five Loud sisters, the zombie child and his little brother to his exact location. "...oops." He said as he realized his mistake, making tracks just as Lola, Zanya and Lisa opened fire with glitter. Once more, they missed him.

"Careful, guys...he knows about Mel…" The Grimwood girl warned her friends, before they ran off after him.

"He's a slippery one, alright…" Lana commented, narrowing her eyes.

"Is he still in front of us?" The eldest Loud sister inquired, pointing her bottle of sparkly gel in front of her, over the heads of her younger sisters.

"Yes, but he's moving in a zig zag…" The mostly invisible young man among them informed her, just as Drake made a sharp turn into a bathroom. The boys bathroom.

"Oh come on!" Lola complained loudly. "That's a cheap shot!"

"Think you can get him to come out, Melmond?" Zanya asked, though she thought she knew the answer.

"No. If anything, he'd pound me if I tried to." The invisible boy said, shaking his head. "And you girls can't go in after him...we're at an impasse…"

"Then, what do we do now?" The hat wearing twin asked in frustration.

"You lot go tell Principal Huggins we have him trapped." He suggested. "I'll stay here to keep watch." Lori, Lana, Lola and Lisa all looked at the young man like he were crazy. "Trust me."

"Alright...we'll take your word for it…" The authoritative blonde responded, albeit apprehensively. The Loud sisters and Zanya start to leave, but Lori and the undead girl were stopped in their tracks by something holding an arm each. They looked back at the hover pair of pants that was Melmond as he silently pointed the ghoul girl's arm toward the ladies bathroom nearby. The two were a little confused, but went with it anyway, hiding themselves inside. Meanwhile, the younger of the Griffins reached into his pocket and pulled out a little plastic bag.

Inside the boy's room, Drake had been listening the whole time and he was grinning ear to ear. 'This is perfect.' He thought. 'The little twerp actually gave me the perfect chance to escape. He probably thinks that makes up for ratting me out...well, I guess I can go a little easy on him when I beat his hide.' He mentally told himself. He waited until he couldn't hear footsteps, then opened the door a crack for a peek. All looked clear. He made a move to make a swift get away, but the first step he took past the threshold in and out of the restroom sent a stabbing pain into his foot. He roared with pain as he fell forward, his face kissing the linoleum. He glanced back to see a line of brownish red Blockees set up in front of the bathroom door. It was a trap! Before he could try and get back up, he got sprayed by two streams of glitter right in the back, his entire back getting coated. With him being partially revealed and his movement hindered by his foot injury, Lori and Zanya had no trouble pouncing on him and subduing him. "Damn it! Get off me!"

"Forget it, pervert. You aren't getting away this time." Lori responded flatly.

"Melmond, you traitor!" The older brother screamed as he heard the half invisible boy collecting his Blockees.

"I'm sorry, Drake...but I did what I thought was right." Melmond said somewhat quietly.

"Right? Right!? What have I told you before!? Might makes right! Might is power! The power of invisibility gives me might, and that makes me right!" He raved to his younger sibling, struggling to break free of the iron grips of the girls pinning him to the ground.

* * *

It took the police about five more minutes to arrive at the school, by which time Drake had started raging and storming about how he was going to get the Louds and their little zombie too. Putting the cuffs on him was a trial in and of itself, and trying to put him in the squad car the combined efforts of four cops and the zombie child. Even when restrained and ready to be brought to the station, he still had the audacity to scream threats at anyone and everyone present, even his own parents (who had just arrived). Mr and Mrs Griffin looked positively thunderstruck and grief stricken as they watched their oldest son being driven away with the authorities. "I can't believe it…" Mrs Griffin said sadly.

"We're so very sorry about this…" Mr Griffin said to the victims of Drake's antics, looking as though someone kicked every puppy he ever raised. "I don't understand how this could have happened...he's never shown any sign of this kind of behavior before…"

"If you'll pardon my saying so…" Principal Huggins said, shaking his head a bit. "...it's likely he was very good at hiding it from you. Children can be like that."

"While you aren't necessarily incorrect, sir…" Lisa interjected calmly. "...I suspect there is more involved here: psychologically, as made evident by his recent actions, and physically, given the fact he is at the age in which puberty is hitting him at its hardest."

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Melmond asked, sympathy for his brother clear in his voice. "I know he has messed up, and big time, but he's still my brother…"

"I speak only for myself, but I can somewhat understand that." The little genius commented, adjusting her glasses, while Lana and Zanya nodded as well. Lori and Lola still seemed to have bitter feelings toward Drake, but no one was really paying them much mind. "As for your inquiry, I believe so, with some professional psychiatric help." The youngest Griffin nodded lightly, watching the cop car drive off.

"Sorry that had to happen, Mel…" Zanya said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"You don't have to apologize, Zanya. If anything, I should be apologizing to you all."

"Say what?" The prissy twin asked, looking at him with befuddlement.

"Mel, what happened wasn't your fault." The zombie girl said to him, turning him to look at her. "You didn't make your brother do what he did."

"She's right. If anything, you played a vital role in stopping him." Lori interjected, walking over to pat him on the back. "Your plan with those blocks stopped him in his tracks long enough for us to pin him."

"And as a result, your brother can get the help he needs." Lisa added.

"Yeah...I guess...but still, I feel as if I could have done something before now...I could have told my parents when I noticed his bed was empty last night…"

"Don't worry about that, my friend." The Grimwood girl told him. "No one can change the past-"

"Well, some of us can." Lisa muttered to herself with a slightly smug smile.

"-All we can do is work in and on the present."

"And speaking of the present...you're all late for class!" Principal Huggins suddenly snapped, tapping his watch.

"...seriously?" Lola grumbled, as Lisa and Lana made a break for the front door, not wanting to get detention. Zanya sighed a bit as well, but walked toward Miss Johnson's class with Melmond right beside her, Lori running flat out to get to the High School before she could get marked absent instead of late.


	9. Chapter 9: So Many Questions

_AN: Just a little chapter to answer a few in story questions and set up some stories that will be happening either soon or over the course of the story. Before we start though, I just want to respond to a few things in the comments._

_Ironchef: Sorry about that. I will edit the intro of the previous chapter to credit you for the idea. Also, I thought I had given my thoughts already, but given how my memory's been lately...yeah. Anyway, I think I could include it, but later on in the story. And finally, just wait. Things will be heating up at Grimwood's soon enough._

_Alexpv22: Well, that is half true. He did abuse his invisibility for his own enjoyment, but he could turn his clothes invisible too._

_Josh: 1: I'm not entirely certain how the wedding will go for the characters with their current romantic arrangement, so I'd like to have that figured out before I even consider that. I do have a few possible future episodes planned though. 2: First off, it's polyamorous, not polygamist. Polygamist indicates they are all already married. And second, as I stated two chapters ago in the authors notes, the Santiagos and Casagrandes already know about the polyamorous relationship. They were right there when it happened, and Bobby even mentioned that they knew about it in the Thanksgiving chapter of Lincoln Loud and the Ghoul School. and 3: I have a christmas chapter planned, but it's not going to be ready for christmas. I have a number of things I'd like to get through in the story first. Thank you for your suggestions though._

_Javimagine236: I kinda had Ava and Ignatius' character arcs planned out already, though having them cooperate a few times during these moments could probably work._

_And before I start, a question for you all. I've been considering doing a a time skip during the story, like a year or two (I probably should have done that from the get go in hindsight, but hindsight is 20/20 and foresight is 50/50), but with all of these plotlines already in effect, would that cause problems? Should I wait until some of them resolve first? What do you think?_

* * *

So Many Questions

"Illusions!" Professor Van Ghoul declared with a swift turn and swish of his hand, turning to face the spell crafting class. Since he had taken on the job of teaching at Grimwood's School, he and Miss Grimwood had split the spellcasting class into beginner and advanced classes. Miss Grimwood took most of the younger students (Tanis, Mark and Gila) and the less magically gifted (Winnie, Silas, Gosuki, and Wendalyn), while Mr Van Ghoul taught the more advanced class (with Lincoln, Phantasma, Elsa, Ignatius, Avalina and Lucy). Sibella continued her own independent magical studies, as she was still a step ahead of the rest of the class, and M-149 had long since withdrew from spellcrafting. Lincoln had taken up position in the middle of the class, notebook out and giving the seasoned warlock his undivided attention. On one side was Phantasma, who was paying attention, but not as much as her human love, and on the other was Avalina, who looked like she couldn't care. Elsa had taken up a seat up front (as usual), while Lucy and Ignatius sat in the back. "Much like the school of divination, illusions are an oft mocked and therefore underestimated school of magic." Vincent explained while walking among the students. "They are all the more fools, though, for underestimating the illusory arts leaves one very susceptible to them." He leaned against Ava's desk as he lectured, his hand right on top of it. The lamia girl cringed in disgust, attempting to shove his hand off as if someone dropped a foul piece of litter onto her desk. However, when her fingers made contact, they went right through his hand. She gave a sharp squeak of a scream, recoiling away from Mr Van Ghoul right before he faded from existence from near her and reappeared right beside Lucy's desk. All eyes turned to him in absolute surprise as he stood there with a satisfied smirk.

"Amazing…" Lucy commented quietly, a smile on her own face.

"That is just a taste of what can be accomplished through illusions." Mr Van Ghoul said. "It may not have the instant, often permanent, results of most combat magics, one should not overlook the importance of being able to control what your opponent sees, hears, feels, smells, and, more importantly, believes."

"Because belief is the key to making an illusion work, yes?" Elsa interjected.

"Precisely, Miss Frankenteen. You could be the greatest illusionist in existence, but it all means beans if you cannot get anyone to believe your illusions are real. Of course, the school isn't all about making things that aren't there. As I've demonstrated, it can also be to hide things you don't wish seen, or create phantom sounds or smells to fool the senses. The only limit being the imagination of the caster." The one son was rapidly taking notes as he listened to the lecture. Magic lessons were always his favorite, but he found it a real treat learning from Vincent Van Ghoul. He had plenty of respect and admiration for Miss Grimwood, of course, but after seeing what the charismatic warlock could do and hearing some of his past exploits from Sibella, the white haired boy became especially excited to learn from him.

"Of course, an illusion is bound to fail if your opponent knows what's coming. Fortunately, not many illusion spells require a verbal component, though the important ones do. Therefore, before we begin, we are going to learn how to cast verbal spells silently." He continued. returning to the front of the classroom. "You will each take it in turn, attempting to silently cast any spell of your choosing. Choose wisely, because what your spell doesn't take from its original verbal component, it will take out of you. I recommend you keep it simple, but it's purely up to you." The class (minus Avalina) nodded in reply as Vincent moved over in front of Elsa. The Loud warlock already had a plan, so he was eagerly awaiting his turn. Lucy also had an idea of what she was going to do, but she wasn't watching the teacher. Her eyes were on Avalina, who was looking at Mr Van Ghoul and her brother with nothing short of contempt. She had noticed from day one that the lamia seemed to have a certain scorn for them while the raven haired Loud sister was waiting in the shadows to surprise her brother. She could feel the hatred...but she couldn't ascertain where it was coming from. One thing was certain, however: she was going to be keeping an eye on her. Elsa had just finished silently casting a water bubble spell before Vincent strode over to Lincoln's desk. The one son rose from his seat, all set to cast his own spell. He raised his hand, twirled his finger and thrust it toward a coffee cup on the teacher's desk. It suddenly grew to the size of a beer mug.

"Well done, Mr Loud." Mr Van Ghoul said with a nod and a smile, looking toward the oversized mug. While their attention was averted, the half snake teen decided to pull something; in this case, Lincoln's chair. She used her tail to move the seat out of range of him. His younger sister scowled and, with a swish of her hand, moved the chair back to its original place just as her brother sat back down, without so much as a word. Ava was surprised, but couldn't look to see what had happened. It was her turn next. She responded to her turn with creating a simple magic bubble in the air, hardly trying but still a silent cast. Phanty followed up by turning a thread of cotton into a little glove, and followed up by having it float over and ruffle Lincoln's hair, the one son chuckling a little. Mr Van Ghoul then went over to Lucy, who moved an empty seat around the room without making so much as a sound. When he walked away, the young goth turned her attention to Ava, who was staring right at her. The little witch simply stared back with her usual emotionless expression, which only further annoyed the lamia. Ignatius was the last to try silent casting, successfully creating a twisting cloud in the form of a serpentine dragon.

"Excellent work, class. You've caught on very well. Now, we will work upon the most basic form of illusion: the illusory image. Watch carefully now." Vincent instructed as he returned once more to the front of the classroom. He holds out his hand with a flourish. "Imora yevers apple." He chanted, a large red apple popping into existence in his hand. It looked firm, juicy and real. However, when he dropped the apple, it disappeared before it even touched the ground. "For this exercise, I want you all to pair up into groups. One of you will create a few illusions silently, while the other will attempt to see through the illusions. After, you will switch places. How you go about will be up to you." With that, he stepped back as the students rose from their desks. Lucy was about to make a beeline for Ignatius, but Avalina had already approached them. She sighed a bit, then felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned and found Phantasma's smiling face.

"Phanty? I was expecting you to be Lincoln's partner." The raven haired occult enthusiast said.

"Nah. Elsa asked Lincoln first. They're best study buddies, after all." The giggly ghost explained, looking back at the young Frankenteen and her human boyfriend. "So, would you like to be partners, Lucy?"

"Certainly." The young witch responded, giving her a small smile.

"Alright, Lincoln. How about we make a little game out of this?" Elsa commented as the two faced each other from a few feet.

"Certainly, Elsa. What'd you have in mind?" The one son inquired, cracking his knuckles in preparation.

"A sort of 'What's wrong with this picture' game. I'll use the image spell to make some subtle changes to my outfit and person, and you will have to ascertain what's an illusion and what's real." The reanimated girl elaborated.

"Hmmm. Sure. Sounds like fun."

"Alright. Close your eyes, Lincoln." She instructed him. The white haired Loud glanced toward Phanty for a moment, but she was focused on the magical exercise with Lucy. He knew his favorite phantom wouldn't try anything cute in class, but she was full of surprises. He shut his eyes and waited a few minutes for Elsa to get ready. "Ok. You can look now." When Lincoln opened his eyes, he noticed his study partner was wearing an orange and white baseball cap on her hair (mostly because her hair was too large to fit in the hat). That was a red flag to him, but he took a moment to examine the rest of her first. His eyes travel down her black and white hair, past her clear, pale face, and to her neck, with door knob like bolts sticking out of her neck. He continued to examine her with a thoughtful look. Her outfit was her usual dark green dress with an olive green shirt. Nothing out of the ordinary there. However, he noticed she was barefoot...but her feet weren't touching the ground.

"Ok. I think I see what's going on here." Lincoln commented with a smirk. "First, you're still wearing your sandals. I just can't see them." The moment he voiced that belief, the spell faded and her shoes returned. "And your neck bolts aren't right either. They shouldn't look like door knobs."

"Correct. Though I have considered changing styles for a while." Elsa answered, her bolts returning to their normal size and appearance.

"And finally, that hat. You never wear a hat." He said, pointing up at her chapeau. To his surprise, Elsa giggled and the hat didn't disappear.

"Sorry, Linc, but the hat is real." She informed him, pulling it from her hair. "It was a red herring."

"...very sneaky."

"Thanks. So, think you found them all?" She asked him, still grinning.

"...yeah, I think so."

"Good attempt, Lincoln. You got two out of three illusions." She told him. "And fell for one non illusion."

"Two out of three? What was the third?" Lincoln asked, utterly perplexed. Elsa held her hand up to her face, and slowly lowered it. Her freckles reappeared. "Huh. How did I miss that?"

"Probably because you were so focused on the hat." The stitched up young lady suggested. "After all, diversion is key to the human's version of illusion magic."

"Very true...well played, Elsa." The middle Loud said, a little peeved at being tricked, but being a good sport about it. "Alright, Elsa. Your turn. Close your eyes." As soon as her eyes were closed, he went to work. The first thing he did was swap the L.L. on the chest of the robe Leni made for him from the left side to the right. Then, he placed an illusionary tattoo on his head, shaped like a bolt of lightning. Next, he created an Ace Savvy watch on his right wrist. And finally, he turned his rounded off turkey tail into a pointed one. He thought for a moment, then nodded in satisfaction. "Alright. Open your eyes." The teen girl opened her eyes and scanned her partner with a critical eye for a moment as he stood with his hands on his hips, a confident smile. She paused for a moment at the scar, then glanced at him arm, then back up to his hair.

"Hmmm. Well, that lightning bolt is fake, right from the get go." She said matter of factly, causing it to fade away. "And your initials were stitched close to your heart on your robe." The moment she pointed that out, the embroidered stitching hopped back to its appropriate side. The daughter of the Frankenteen Monster had to pause and really think now. She knew he had an Ace Savvy watch, but was he wearing it earlier? She couldn't remember. Besides, he could have had it in his pocket, much like she had the hat. She glanced him over one more time as she pondered this, and spotted his pointed hair. "Heh. Got yourself a haircut, Linc? Or is that another illusion?"

"Well spotted." Her study partner replied, his hair returning to normal. Now, the only thing out of the ordinary was the watch. She wasn't entirely sure about her answer, but figured she would go with her gut on this one.

"And...that watch. I'm pretty sure that's not real either." She finally said, and when she did, the watch disappeared.

"Drat." Lincoln snapped his fingers. "I thought I had you with the watch."

"You almost did, Lincoln." She admitted with a chuckle. "I just kinda guessed about the watch. A very solid attempt."

"Thanks." The one son said with a slight smile. Little did they know that the rest of the groups were doing something similar. Lucy and Phanty were replacing random objects in the room with imaginary lookalikes, while trying to guess what object was replaced. Meanwhile, Ignatius and Avalina were using two chairs and creating the illusion of a third chair, mixing them up to see who got fooled and who wouldn't. Vincent observed from his desk, pleased with what he was the children were playing games to study, he could tell they were still taking it seriously, and all of them were doing quite well in creating and seeing through illusions. After letting them do their own thing for about half an hour, he called them all back to their seats for the next part of the lesson. This time, they were creating sounds from nowhere: basically ventriloquism with fewer limits. After a slightly more chaotic practical exercise (in which Phanty had WAY too much fun with the spell), the time had come for the class to end for the day. Both the advanced and beginner's spellcrafting classes let out at the same time, Lincoln purposely stalling a bit so he could talk to Lucy. "Enjoying the advanced class, Luce?" He asked her quietly.

"Most certainly." She answered with a smile. "Coming here was the best decision I've ever made."

"You know, that reminds me…" Her older brother started, a thoughtful expression on his face. "You never did tell me how you managed to get to come to Grimwood's before the school year ended."

"Heh. Oh yeah. Well, it all started like this: Principal Huggins had called me into his office one day…"

* * *

Early December, Royal Woods Elementary

It was early afternoon in the elementary school, with only an hour or two before class ended. Lucy Loud had been called up to the Principal's office out of the blue, much to her surprise. She didn't think she had done anything wrong, so she walked without fear to his office. When she arrived, she found him crying his eyes out, his face on his desk. Sensing something tragic had happened, she walked over to the front of his desk, sitting in the chair across from him. "You wanted to see me, sir?" His sobbings were momentarily ceased as he looked up, his eyes red and puffy. He sniffled and coughed a few times before he attempted to speak.

"Ah...hello, Miss Loud. *sniff* Please...have a seat." He said, in spite of her already sitting down. "...There's no need to worry, Miss Loud...you aren't in trouble. I...I just need your help with something…"

"Is something the matter?" The little goth inquired softly.

"I just *sniff* got a telegram earlier today…" He explained while his eyes welled up with tears. "My...My dear Granny Huggins...passed away just this morning." The moment he managed to get that info out, the floodgates opened, the middle aged principal burying his face into his arms as he sobbed uncontrollably. The raven haired pale child hopped out of her seat, moving over beside him to gently pat him on the back. It didn't show on her face, but she had sympathy for his pain and loss.

"My sincerest apologies, sir." It took the distraught principal a few minutes to calm down enough to continue speaking.

"...I know it's rather short notice, Miss Loud...but I need your expertise in planning her funeral." He finally said, his voice a little hoarse.

"Of course. I'd be more than happy to." She told him.

"Thank you, Miss Loud...now, we do have a few...requests…" He added, though he sounded hesitant to mention it as he pulled a folded up piece of paper from his pocket. "...and an unfortunately limited budget." The eight year old budding witch took the paper, looking it over. To most, it seemed a very tall order. A nice, but pricey coffin, a catered funeral, a plot in a very specific location in Ohio. Tricky, but nothing Lucy couldn't handle (even if she couldn't be present to oversee). The problem area, however, was the eulogy song played by his Granny's favorite musician, Dirk Jammen from Steelika (which came as a surprise to Lucy). At the bottom of the paper was the budget for the funeral...and it made her cringe a bit.

'It's not much to work with...but I think I could call in a favor or two…' She thought to herself. Then a lightbulb goes off in her head and a smile creeped onto her face. "Principal Huggins, what if I were to tell you that I could handle this for you, except possibly getting Mr Jammen, and all it would cost you is the price of the plot?"

"...I would tell you I'm in no mood for jokes…"

"I don't do jokes, sir." She responded in a serious tone, but still with a smile. "But I do have connections." She followed up with, getting his attention. "I'll have to call in a lot of favors and, as I said, I cannot promise I can get Mr Jammen, but I can ensure the only cost you and your loved ones will have to cover is the plot. I don't have any links out there...yet."

"You could do that…? Really?" He asked, his eyes widening, then narrowed in suspicion. "What's the catch…?" With that, Lucy pulled a school transfer form, showing it to him. It was mostly filled out, showing she wanted to transfer to Grimwood's School. All that was needed was his signature, her parents' signatures, and Miss Grimwood's. He looked it over for a moment, then to her. "Really? That's all?" He inquired in surprise. She nodded in reply. "You have a deal, Miss Loud. Pull this off and I'll sign without hesitation."

"Deal." Lucy replied, shaking his hand.

* * *

"...it took every favor I had built since I started working funerals." Lucy explained to her brother as they moved through the hall. "And, as you could expect, I couldn't get Dirk Jammen to appear at the funeral...in person. He wanted to, but his schedule wouldn't allow it. However, we were able to get him to live stream to the event so he could still play. Once it was over and Principal Huggins returned to school, he handed me the signed form, and the rest was history."

"Whoa...how'd you-wait. Luna?"

"Luna." She answered. "I owe her till I'm fifteen, but darned if it wasn't worth it."

"And here I thought I was the master planner." Lincoln commented with a chuckle, patting her shoulder.

"I guess you rubbed off on me quite a bit, big brother." She told him. Just then, little Tanis came running up to them.

"Come on, Lucy. Study group is about to start." She told her before she headed off for the school yard as fast as her little legs could take her.

"Excuse me, Lincoln, but I need to go."

"Sure thing, Lucy. See you later." He said, waving as his little sister ran off after his honorary little sister. Since Lucy came slightly under halfway through the year, she had some catching up to do with most classes. Fortunately, Tanis, Gila and Milly were more than happy to include her and Mark into their study group. With their help, she was up to speed in no time, and even giving her own aid with what she knew of magic and potions before she even came to Grimwood's.

* * *

A couple seconds earlier, Gosuki had emerged from the beginners magic class, pondering what she was going to do until the next class. It was then she noticed Avalina slithering away from the advanced class, all by herself. The young kaiju saw this as an opportunity. She had been wanting to ask her about her unusual behavior regarding Lincoln, but she had never caught the lamia girl all by herself. After all, she had no idea if it was a sensitive topic and didn't want to embarrass her if it was. Gosuki plodded after her as she slithered away. "Ava! Hang on a sec!" The girl with the coal black hair paused and turned to see who had called to her.

"Oh, hello, Gosuki." She said with a bright smile. "Did you need something?"

"Yeah. Could I speak to you in private for a moment? I have something I'd like to ask you." The lamia was a little confused, but shrugged in reply.

"I suppose so." She answered, gesturing toward the nearest empty classroom, letting her pink scaled friend in first. She followed shortly after, shutting the door behind her. "What's on your mind, Suki?"

"I noticed you had been rather...cold toward Lincoln." Suki started, keeping her voice low to prevent passersby from eavesdropping. "From day one, you've given him strange looks, and seem to be taking every opportunity to avoid him. You haven't even returned a single one of his greetings."

"Mmhmm…?" Ava asked, her arms crossed, the looking on her face saying 'Your point is…?'

"It just seems so rude to me, and unnecessary. I mean, what has Lincoln ever done to you?"

"...nothing." Avalina answered bluntly, which brought a frown to the daughter of Godzilla.

"Nothing? Then why treat Lincoln so poorly?" The lamia girl sighed, suddenly looking pained and saddened.

"If you must know, Gosuki...I myself have been treated most terribly by the human race back in France…" She explained to her, placing her hand on her forehead as she slumped back into an empty seat. "...acts of violence, words most unkind, terrible things I don't even wish to describe…" The young kaiju's displeasure quickly changed to one of great sympathy. "...and unlike our friend, Silas, the humans' abuse was directed purely at myself. Not my sisters, nor my parents. Just me…"

"Oh my...I'm so sorry, Avalina. I had no idea…"

"I know, Suki, and I don't hold it against you. I know the human is your friend. However, after the traumas I have experienced by their hand, I don't think I can ever be friends with a human…" The half serpent girl told her, shaking her head in a depressed manner.

"I see...have you told anyone else this?" The princess of all monsters inquired.

"No...as you can imagine, it is quite traumatic...I don't like talking about it, even to close friends."

"I suppose I can understand...you can tell others when and if you're ready. But I think you should explain to Lincoln how you feel about humans, so he can know to give you some space like he did with Gila." Suki suggested, trying to help as much as she could.

"...I suppose I could...in due time." Ava responded, a sour hint in her voice.

"Thank you, Ava. And again, I'm sorry for pushing this."

"It's fine, Suki. As I said, I understand. However, I must ask for you to keep quiet about this, at least for the time being…"

"Of course. You will tell the others when you're ready." Gosuki said before she stepped over to the door. "See you around, Ava."

"See you Gosuki." Avalina replied, waving to her reptilian friend. As soon as she was gone and down the hall, the lamia teen sighed with relief. "I can't believe she bought that...that was easily one of my worst performances." She said quietly, relaxing in her seat. "What a hassle...but at least that was relatively painless, unlike what happened a couple weeks ago…" The half snake/half girl slowly rose from the chair, slithering around the room. "Gah...acting like I was about to attack that baby was a big mistake...if only he weren't standing RIGHT there...I could had just shooed her away and no one would have been the wiser…"

'You know, it's odd...why didn't the human report me to Miss Grimwood?' A voice in her head suddenly wondered. 'He could have had me skinned alive for that, figuratively speaking...at least I hope only figuratively...and everyone else...why didn't he tell anyone? it doesn't make sense…' She put a hand to her forehead, groaning a bit as she wracked her brain on this. "Well, regardless of why he didn't say anything before, he could still use that against me later...no mistake...he needs to go…but how to go about it?" She said out loud in response to her inner monologue.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ignatius was standing outside the door, listening intently. He had just been passing when he heard mention of an attacked baby and just had to hear what he was missing. While she never mentioned Lincoln's name, he had a feeling the human boy was at the center of it. He smirked a little, putting that bit of information into his mental vault, just in case he needed it for later. However, right now, he had more important matters to attend to. He hastily vacated from the area and made his way to the common room, where Sibella was working on her independent study of magic: particularly fusing spells in this case. Judging by the look of her, this was difficult, even for her, but she took that as a challenge, and she planned to dominate it. Just not today. She closed the tome she was reading just as the vampire boy entered the room. "Ah. Sibella. Just finished your own lesson, I see."

"Indeed. Hello to you as well, Ignatius." The daughter of Dracula said, giving him a small smile with her greeting. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"I simply wished to ask you something, regarding the relationship between yourself and Mr Loud." He said, walking over to the table she had been sitting at. "I had heard, from Miss Phantom herself, that the young man is not only dating you, but her and a human girl as well. Is this true?"

"Yes, it is true."

"Pardon my saying so, Sibella, but that is just despicable…" The Morvis boy said, looking angry.

"Despicable? What's the matter with it if we're all fine with it?" Sibella asked with a raised eyebrow. Ignatius blinked, being entirely unprepared for that.

"Are you? Oh, my apologies. I suppose I simply had the wrong idea…" He said, quickly changing tactics.

"It's quite alright, Ignatius. At face value, I can understand how it could look like something bad." The lavender skinned vampiress said with a soft smile.

"That said, it does seem a touch unfair...he can date three girls, yet all of you are restricted only to him." He said, stroking his chin a bit with one hand.

"Now who said that was the case?" Sibella questioned with a frown.

"Oh, am I mistaken again? Are you, Phantasma or the human girl dating anyone else along with him?" He asked, sounding like it was pure curiosity.

"Well, no. Not that I know of." She admitted, her previous indignation deflating a bit. "But we could, as long as everyone is ok with that."

"Is that a fact? Are you sure Mr Loud wouldn't get jealous? I'm not saying he seems the type…" He added quickly, before Sibella could object. "I just don't know him as well as you do."

"I believe he wouldn't." She said, though she didn't really know for certain. It had never come up before. However, she was confident that Lincoln wouldn't be against the idea. He was nothing if not fair.

"I see. A better man than most, in that respect." He commented off handedly, to which Sibella nodded in agreement. "...again, my sincerest apologies for my erroneous assumptions regarding your relationship."

"Don't worry so much about it, Ignatius. It is a common misunderstanding. Almost everyone we've told about it had similar thoughts about it." She told him before she stood up from her chair, picking up her spellbook. "I'm feeling rather tired from my magic practice, so I think I'll retire to my room for a little rest. I'll talk to you later, Ignatius."

"Of course. Rest well, Sibella." He replied in his usual smooth manner, lightly bowing to her. The vampiress gave him a small smile in return before she left. As she walked, the question of how Lincoln would take one of them dating another guy as well as him came back to her. In the whole time she had known the one son, she never pegged him as being the jealous type. However, he also never really had a rival for her affections before, so she really just didn't know. Perhaps that is a conversation she should have with him at the next available opportunity. Meanwhile, Ignatius was smirking a bit, feeling quite pleased with himself.

'It was a bit of a rocky road, but the seed has been planted.' He thought to himself as he strolled out of the common room himself. 'It will take time, no doubt, but time is one thing I have. Soon enough, Sibella will be mine, as she should be.'

* * *

Outside, under the old weeping willow tree, the youngest five Grimwood students were well into their studies. They had just finished reviewing the earlier history lesson, and were working on their math homework. This was the subject Mark and Tanis kind of struggled with, but Milly excelled at, so naturally, the little martian was the center of attention for this segment. This suited M-149, but it also suited Gila. She wanted a chance to speak with Lucy, and didn't want to draw as much attention to herself. So, while Milly was helping her two friends, she moved closer to the gothic Loud. "Lucy...could I ask you something?" She whispered to her, while looking like she was focused on her work.

"Of course." Lucy responded in a normal tone (for her), which got her hushed by the aquatic girl.

"Not so loud." She told her quietly, which made the youngest funeral director look at her curiously. "I wanted to ask you...about Lincoln…" She continued, a faint blush appearing on her face.

"Go on…" Lucy said quietly, intrigued.

"...do you know...if he likes me?"

"Of course he likes you. He likes-" She started to say.

"I don't mean just as friends…" Gila interrupted her. "I mean...does he...really like me...like…"

"The way he likes Sibella, Ronnie Anne and Phantasma?" Lucy finished her thought quietly. The way the fish girl blushed deeply spoke volumes to Lincoln's eight year old sister, who kinda grinned to her. "You have a crush on Lincoln."

"...yes." Gila confessed in almost a squeak.

"...adorable." The little goth commented. That wasn't a word she used very often, so when she did, it had extra weight to it. It turned the Creature's daughter's face completely red. "Have you spoken to Lincoln about it?"

"What? No...I can't just walk right up to Lincoln and say 'Hey, Lincoln. I gotta crush on you…'" Gila covered her face with her webbed hands to hide her face wide blush.

"Why not?" Lucy inquired just under a whisper. "You don't need to say that, exactly, but you should talk to him."

"...I don't think I can…" She confessed, her words muffled by her hands. "...I don't know if he even feels the same about me…"

"Gila, listen to me." The raven haired Loud gently lifted her head so the fish girl was looking her in the eyes. "Unrequited love is a lot like guilt; You'll never feel better about it until you get it off your chest. I speak from experience."

"But...what if he doesn't share the same feelings?"

"Then at least you would know. It would hurt for a while, yes, but it would heal with time. But never knowing for certain...it pains you for as long as it takes." Lucy informed her in a whisper. "Here's what I recommend: invite Lincoln to lunch or something sometime and talk to him. Just talk to him. Find a way to bring up how you feel about him, and let him know."

"...Easier said than done...but...I will try." Gila finally said, lowering her hands from her face.

"What are you two talking about?" Tanis suddenly asked with a raised eyebrow, having noticed the two talking moments earlier and having seen Gila blushing.

"Nothing." The two replied in unison. She gave them a slightly suspicious look for a moment, but decided to just drop it. After all, they had more important things to discuss: like the next day's alchemy test. While they were reviewing various symbols and how they pertained to the alchemical process, the little pale Loud glanced to the aquatic girl beside her and gave her a small, encouraging smile, as if to say everything would be alright. However, Gila wasn't too sure about that. She knew Lucy was right, and she would need to talk to Lincoln about this if she was even going to stand a prayer of being his girlfriend...she just wouldn't do it today. 'After all, today is pretty much half over and we have science class tonight.' Gila reasoned to herself. 'I can just as easily ask him tomorrow...only we have classes most of the day tomorrow...no problem. The next day then...for certain…' She told herself, trying to sound firm, but it lost some effective with how nervous her inner voice was.


	10. Chapter 10: Take the bull by the horns

_AN: Hey there all you readers! Merry Christmas Eve! Didn't necessarily plan for this to come out at this exact time, but here we go anyway. _

* * *

Take the bull by the horns

"What do you mean you won't sign my petition!?" Avalina asked in outrage, looking disappointed in the minotaur teen before her in the Grimwood school library. She had drafted a petition to have Lincoln and Lucy removed from the school, but she needed signatures for it to have any impact. Naturally, she thought Silas would be an easy choice, as he hated humans too. However, she was bitterly disappointed.

"Means just what ah said, lass." The half bull boy replied, returning the sheet of paper. "Not that ah don't sympathize with ya. Just cannae put me name behind this."

"Give me one good reason you won't sign!" She demanded angrily.

"Ah'll give ye three, lass." He retorted, holding up three thick fingers, which turned her anger into surprise. "First and foremost, Miss Grimwood likes the lad and lass, and won't hear a word against them without proof of wrongdoing. Ah found this out when ah tried ta get Lincoln removed as me roommate. Second, he's rather popular with the others. Acting out against him without just cause...it's social suicide, that is." Ava looked down at her petition with a thoughtful frown on her face. "And third, they haven't done a thing to me. If anything, the two have been nothing short of civil ta me. The lad especially has given me some space since ah told him that ah don't like humans." Silas shrugged to her. "Mah apologies, lassie, but it's gonna be a solid no from me."

"...thank you anyway, Silas…" Ava said in a deadpan tone as she turned and slithered away in defeat. So much for that idea, she thought to herself. She had it all planned out too. She thought she could have easily gotten his signature, and maybe Ignatius'. A little pushing could have probably gotten Mark to sign, and Milly, in her mind, wouldn't care one way or another, and she could have tricked Suki into signing. However, if she couldn't even get the one guy who disliked humans as much as she claimed to to back her up, then what was the point? She crumpled up the petition and burned it to ashes in her hand as she sighed. That said, her talk with the minotaur lad had given her a lot to think about. He was quite right with what he said about Miss Grimwood liking the Louds, as well as their fellow students. Outright acting against them would be very damaging to her reputation there (not that her reputation could get any worse with Lincoln, but she didn't care about what he thought). She would need to be a lot more subtle about it.

'Hmmmm...Silas said that Miss Grimwood wouldn't be willing to do anything about the humans without proof of wrongdoing.' She thought to herself as she glided across the dusty floor of the ground level halls. 'So the easiest way to get them out is to catch them doing something wrong...with a nudge in the right direction, of course.' She grinned for a moment as she considered this, but the grin quickly faded as a new thought sprang up. 'But I'll need to be careful...make sure none of it could be traced back to me.' She scratched the side of her head as she thought. 'And I should probably focus on one at a time...starting with the eldest of the two. But what can I do to get him in trouble?'

She paused a moment as she looked out the window. Right out on the school grounds, she saw Lincoln with Phanty, and they appeared to be...fighting!? Ava got really excited for a moment, thinking this was it. However, a closer look dashed her hopes. The white haired boy may have been throwing punches and kicks, but Phantasma was smiling and giggling as she evaded his attacks, occasionally slipping in during an opening in his assault to kiss him. The fact Wendalyn and Tanis were watching and cheering them on cinched it: it wasn't a fight. It was sparring. She sighed, but she felt she could still use this. If he was caught getting into a fight; a big enough real fight, that would get him expelled. Failing that, perhaps he could get hurt enough to be forced to return home. And she knew just who could hurt him that much…'But...could I really get Silas in that much trouble?' She wondered briefly as she continued on her way to her room. 'He could get expelled too…I will need to really think about this.'

* * *

Over the next several days, Avalina took whatever excuse she could think of to follow Lincoln and get a better idea of his habits: particularly, when he would spar with one of his friends, or even Lynn on occasion. The one son, still very much at odds with her, just ignored her anytime he noticed her, and no one else really questioned it, luckily for her. So for the most part, she was able to spy on him uninterrupted. The only hiccup in her data collection came when she followed Lincoln, Winnie, Gila and Wendy in human form going swimming in the moat. She was fine before they went into the water, but when the white haired boy and the transformed arachnotaur emerged, she found herself unable to take her eyes off of them. "Whew. It's been too long since I last had a good swim." Wendalyn said cheerfully, sitting on the moat shore, sitting on her knees with her legs under her. She was wearing a one piece swimsuit made of her own spider silk.

"Well, you're a pretty good swimmer." Lincoln told her with a smile, wearing his orange trunks.

"Thanks. You're not half bad in the water too."

"Thanks." He replied, turning to look at her. "Do you make all of your own clothes?" He asked, noticing her spidersilk swimsuit.

"Mmhmm." She answered with a nod. "My mother taught me how to sew, knit and loom, using my silk to make clothing."

"That's pretty cool, and probably saves a bundle."

"It does, which is especially helpful since we don't have any money." Wendalyn revealed, in a tone that suggested this was no big deal.

"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that." He said, looking at her sympathetically.

"No need to be sorry. It's never been a problem." She responded, still with a smile. "We've always lived out in nature, we know where to find nice, juicy fruits and vegetables, and apart from clothes, and maybe blankets and pillows, we don't really have a need for a lot of stuff. It's how we've lived for as long as I can remember."

"Huh. Well, if it's working for you and your mother…" He said, his earlier frown turning upside down. She simply nodded in reply. "I don't think that could work with my family."

"I don't suppose so. I've heard your family is rather large."

"Yeah, and nearly half of my siblings don't even like camping as a recreation. You tell them they have to camp just to survive and they'd flip out." He chuckled for a moment as he suddenly imagined Lola needing to live in the woods. "Not that we couldn't do it, mind. My family did end up marooned on an island once, and we got through that alright. Just not something we could do all day every day."

"Yeah, it's not for everyone." Wendalyn agreed. "I've heard a little about your family from the others. They sound really nice."

"They can be." Lincoln confirmed. "Though they have pretty intense personalities as well."

"Hehe. Lucy told me as much." The arachnotaur stated with a soft giggle. "Do you think they'd get along well with me?"

"I think so. Luan especially would probably be fast friends with you, and Lori would get on well with you...provided you resist the urge to tickle her."

"I make no promises."

"Hehe. Anyway, the only sister I'm not sure about is Leni." The one son admitted, looking down into the water as Winnie and Gila jetted past underwater, neck and neck in swim speed.

"Leni? Isn't she the sweet one?"

"She is." He said with a nod, turning to look at Wendalyn again. "And she's really into fashion, so she'd probably love that about you...but she's deathly afraid of spiders." The pale half spider girl's face fell when she heard that. "But...since you're only half spider, we're not sure if she'll react the same. I mean, I think she knows by now; I asked my mother to mention it to her some time ago."

"Hmmm. Perhaps you should invite her over to meet me, in that case." Wendy suggested. "Not right out of the blue, of course. Make sure she knows what she's getting into and ease her into it, like getting into a hot bath."

"Hmmm. Couldn't hurt to try." Lincoln agreed, nodding to her, which brought the smile back to her face. It was at that point Lincoln stood back up, preparing to dive back into the water. Avalina's face turned red as she watched him, hastily turning her head away.

'Focus, Ava…' She scolded herself. '...and not on his legs.' She added, her cheeks still pretty pink. She looked back into her notebook. To the casual observer, it would look like she was just lounging and doing homework. In reality, she was examining the information she had gathered on Lincoln. She had a pretty good idea of his exercise schedule, particularly when he sparred. 'Humans...so consistent to the point of being predictable.' She thought as she tapped her lip with her pen. 'Now, just to set him up against Silas...shouldn't be hard, as he has a temper…'

* * *

A few days earlier, Silas had offered to help Tanis with a project she was working on. It was a project for science class, which wasn't Silas' strong subject, but it required some muscle, and the muscular monster boy had that in spades. As part of her report (which she chose to do on the conservation of momentum), she needed a physical demonstration of her subject of choice; so she decided she'd build a larger Newton's cradle. Things went smoothly when they built the frame, magically grew some stones into larger rocks and shaped them until they were almost perfectly round. However, problems started to occur when they tried to suspend them on the frame. The first four went up without a hitch. However, the moment Silas strung up the final one, the first rock fell from its place. Not really a problem, they thought. Science rarely ever went without problems, so he went back to re-hang the first ball, only more securely. By the time he finished with that, the fifth orb broke its support cords and dropped. Now the minotaur was getting annoyed.

He moved back to the other side of the cradle, just as the first ball experienced gravity. Silas was getting red in the face, while Tanis was trying her darnedest not to giggle. She managed to calm the bull teen down enough for them to think of a new approach. They borrowed some thick, heavy chains from wherever they could and replaced the original cables with them. After a few hours of work, they managed to get all five stones suspended in the air. Now for the test. Silas pulled the first earthen sphere back and let it go. It slammed right into the others…and all five balls fell from to the dirt. This was the last straw for Silas. With a bellow, he started slamming his fists into the rocks and the frame, destroying them utterly. Tanis called out to him to try and get him to stop, but he wasn't listening. All she could do was let him run out of steam. When he finished his rampage, the cradle was nothing more than scrap and rubble. He apologized to her several times in the span of a few minutes (even though she forgave him after the first apology), thinking he completely ruined her science project. However, as they were picking up the pieces, they noticed that some of the pieces of one of the rocks had little crystals forming on one of its sides. The more they dug, the more crystals they found. As a result, Tanis changed her subject from a physics demonstration to a geology report.

* * *

Avalina winced a bit as she remembered that moment. '...he can be seriously scary when he's angry…' She thought to herself. She was starting to have second thoughts about this plan; not because she was worried about Lincoln, but she was worried about how much trouble Silas could get into. If he had succeeded in doing serious harm to the boy, it would get rid of him, but the minotaur could get in deep soup too. Could she really do that to a good monster? She seriously contemplated this for a moment before she nodded to herself. 'It's for the best...but at least I can help mitigate possible damage to Silas' reputation…' She thought to herself as she slithered away.

* * *

The lamia girl had to wait three whole days before she could put her plan into action. However, the wait wasn't a problem with her. She had no problem playing the long game. It was during the brief break between lunch and alchemy class, and Silas was taking a nap in his and Lincoln's room. Ava knew she'd need to be fairly quick or she'd need to wait until the next opportunity. She snuck her way into their room and quietly glided her was beside his bed. The muscular minotaur was fast asleep, which pleased the half serpent girl. She needed him asleep, at least for this to be executed easiest. She gently placed a hand on his forehead. "Mallavar Morphe Zinote." She chanted quietly, a sickly red aura enveloping her hand and sinking into his head. Silas suddenly had a pained look on his face and he started to sweat some.

"Ach...what...what are ye doing…!?" The minotaur asked in his sleep, a hint of fear in his voice. "...No...ye can't…"

'That's it. Let the nightmare take hold.' She thought to herself. 'Let it fuel your anger.' The muscle bound teen groaned as he started to toss and turn.

"No...take yer hands off her…" He growled, his fists clenched. "Stop it! Ah said stop it!" He started to yell, his face turning more red. "That's it! Ah won't let ye hurt them anymore!" Silas suddenly woke up, screaming in pure wrath. Avalina hastily bunched herself into the nearest corner as sprang from his head and forcibly shoved the blanket barrier aside, snorting steam from his snout. He wanted to find Lincoln. He wanted to break him. However, Lincoln wasn't in his bed. He grunted in anger and stormed out of the room.

"Shoot…" Avalina said quietly to herself. "I didn't get to tell him where the human was…" She lamented as the minotaur went off in a nearly blind rage. He had no idea where the target of his fury was, but he intended to search the school from the bottom to the top if he needed to. He started with any door opened even slightly ajar, forcing them open with a slam. Usually, there was no one in there (lucky for him), but in the second to last room, Mark and Elsa (who were comparing alchemy homework) were startled by his barging in. They looked at him in stunned silence as he glared into the room, snorted and stormed off. "What was that about…?" The skeleton boy asked, still trembling.

"I don't know, but it doesn't look good." Elsa commented. She quickly rose from her chair beside Mark's bed, hurrying off to tell the others what she just witnessed. Meanwhile, Silas was continuing his hunt, taking his wrathful search to the grounds of the school: the gardens, the volleyball court, the moat. Still no sign of the middle son. By the time he got back inside, he was starting to cool down. He was still seeking Lincoln, but he wasn't seeing red. By the time he finished searching the dining room and kitchen (which in hindsight was a silly idea), he started to really think about it.

'Silas, lad, what're ya doing?' He thought to himself. 'Going off like that because of what happened in a dream? Are ya daft?' He scolded himself. He did have to admit that he was starting to feel pretty silly, though he was still walking about looking for the white haired boy. 'Ah mean, it's not like the lad is anything like that scum who tried ta end ya. If anything, he's been, dare ah say, a good egg. He's never given ye any reason ta think otherwise, so what're doing?'

"Aye." He finally said out loud. "It was a mighty daft thing to do." He added, rubbing the back of his head. "Dinnae know what came over me." He looked down at his other arm, which was still kind of twitchy. "Me muscles are still restless. Perhaps ah should hit the gym and work out ta calm down." He decided, heading for the gym tower.

* * *

"Come on, Linc!" Winnie said as she dodged back, avoiding an open palmed strike from the white haired boy. With a decently long break before the next class, it was an ideal time for a little sparring. It was just Lincoln and Winnie today, as the others had things they needed to do before the next class, but that was fine. It meant they didn't have the risk of accidentally hitting one of their friends. Besides, the werewolf girl enjoyed helping the young man hone his martial arts skills. He didn't take it quite as seriously as when Sigmund threatened the school, but he still worked to maintain his few muscles and improve his fighting. The lycan child had to duck as he almost immediately threw a kick at her, to which she followed up with a few backflips to gain some distance.

"Nice moves, Winnie." The one son complimented her with a smirk.

"Thanks." She replied, leaping at him with a flying kick. He blocked the assault with his left arm before following with a right hook. She leaned back, narrowly avoiding a punch to the face. She then threw her head forward, headbutting him in the stomach; not hard enough to cause much damage, but enough to wind and stagger him. She snickered a bit as she hopped back, putting enough space between them to prevent a counter attack. Lincoln hadn't expected that, but that was part of what made Winnie a great sparring partner. She was unpredictable, forcing Lincoln to think on his feet in the heat of the moment. Once he recovered, he prepared himself for the next round, his furry opponent already set to fight. He decided to take the offensive, lunging at Winnie with a downward strike, as if he were trying to claw at her. She easily evaded that blow, but almost didn't escape the left uppercut. That move startled her greatly, to the point she didn't see the leg sweep. He knocked her feet out from under her, but the werewolf was very agile. She cartwheeled to the side, landing right back on her feet. The one son wasn't done, though. He pressed his advantage, rushing her before she could get reoriented. Winnie couldn't counter attack with how fierce and fast he was attacking, needing to focus all of her effort on dodging. She needed to get an opening to fight back, and she thought she had just the way.

When Lincoln threw a left jab toward her head, she ducked under it and slipped around him to avoid the right swing. This got her behind him, where she prepared to strike. However, her sudden move panicked the young man, causing him to react out of instinct, thrusting his elbow back at her. His elbow connected hard with her snout, sending her falling back onto her tail. Lincoln gasped as he looked back, his face going pale when he noticed her nose was bleeding. "Winnie! Oh no, I am so sorry…" He said, feeling even more panic. He was about to go over to check on her, but before he could, the door was swung open with a slam. With a roar of pure rage, Silas came charging in, slamming the human boy into the nearest wall before grabbing him by the neck. Steam billowed from the minotaur's snout as he glared at the choking boy with red eyes.

"How. Dare. You!?" He said, nearly choking on his own fury.

"Si-ACK!" Lincoln tried to say, but he could hardly breathe in this position.

"Silas! Let him go!" Winnie yelled, holding her nose to stem the flow.

"No! This scum hurt ya!"

"It was an accident!"

"What's going on here!?" Scrappy demanded to know, standing at the busted door leading to the winding stairs out of the gym tower. His little arms were folded in front of him, the spunky pup frowning at the scene before him.

"He gave Winnie a bloody nose!" Silas bellowed, not releasing Lincoln in spite of his face turning red.

"It was just an accident, coach!" The werewolf girl counter, looking to the pup. "Linc and I were sparring and it got out of hand…"

"...Silas, let him go. Now!" The little great dane barked. The minotaur teen hesitated for a moment, but then dropped Lincoln to the floor. "Are you ok, Lincoln?" The white haired boy nodded as he coughed and gasped for breath, Scrappy running over to check him out. Once he was sure the young man was alright, he took a step back. "You want to explain what happened here?"

"Winnie and I...we were sparring." Lincoln started to elaborate; a fact Scooby's nephew already knew. He knew about his workout and sparring schedule as well as anyone else who was paying attention to him. "I kinda reacted in panic and hit Winnie, and way too hard, by accident." The pup nodded, looking between the three for a moment. He thought he had a pretty clear idea of what went on here.

"Silas, I can understand what you thought you saw." Scrappy started, looking up at the angry bull teen, not a trace of fear in his eyes. It was kinda surreal to see such a little puppy standing tall against a very angry and strong minotaur. "I really do. But that's no excuse for what you did. You could have seriously hurt Lincoln." Silas snorted, but gave a short, curt nod. "And you two, you need to be more careful." He continued, his eyes on the werewolf girl and white haired boy. "I personally have no problem with you or anyone else doing any sparring, but the moment real injuries happen, then we have a problem. I get that it was an accident, which is why we aren't all going to Miss Grimwood about this." Hearing that caused the minotaur to flinch, though his scowl remained. "So here's what we're going to do. Lincoln, you apologize to Winnie-"

"He already did." Winnie interrupted him indignantly.

"-I'm sure he did, but humor me." Scrappy continued, annoyed. "And Silas, you apologize to Lincoln."

"Winnie, I'm very sorry." Lincoln said, his voice very hoarse. "I never meant to cause your nose to bleed."

"It's fine, Linc. Really. I know you didn't mean it." She responded. "...was a really good hit though." Coach Scrappy nodded, satisfied with that apology. He then turned to Silas.

"...Sorry." He grunted, his arms crossed over his chest.

"...you can do better than that…"

"That's as good as he gets…"

"It's fine, Coach." Lincoln intervened, surprising the little dog, his lycan friend, and the minotaur as well. "I don't blame him. From what he saw, it looked like I attacked Winnie. Did he react hastily and harshly? Yes, but I would have been very upset as well if I saw the same scene."

"...if you say so, Lincoln." Scrappy said, not exactly thrilled to hear that, but if he was really alright with it, then so be it. "...just be more careful; all of you. I don't want to have this conversation again."

"Yes, Coach." They all said together. The canine phys ed teacher nodded before he started to leave.

"...and you're fixing this door after your next class, Silas."

"Aye…" The hot headed monster replied. Once the puppy was gone and heading down the stairs, his steely glare returned to the white haired boy. "Ye got lucky, human...but ah ain't about to let this stand. We're gonna put an end to this tonight…" He growled in a low voice, too low for the coach to hear, but not Winnie. "Meet me on the grounds tonight after lights out...ah'll teach ye ta hurt the lasses." The poor young man gulped, utterly terrified.

"Silas! We just told you-" Winnie started, but the minotaur wasn't listening. His mind was set and that's all there was to it. He stormed his way out of the gym tower, leaving the two behind. "Hmph...he's so bull headed...no pun intended." She complained before turning to look at the pale, white haired boy.

"...I'm dead." He said with a whimper.

* * *

"I'm telling you, he was furious about something." Elsa said, having gathered her friends together in the entry hall to tell them what she had witnessed. The only ones missing were Ava, Suki, Mark and Winnie. "He just slammed the door open without so much as knock, looked around and stormed off. Not a word spoken."

"Goodness. I wonder what got him so upset." Sibella said, just as alarmed as her reanimated friend.

"It could be anything." M-149 commented. "He does have something of a short fuse."

"Yeah, but he doesn't just get angry for no reason." Ignatius reasoned, stroking his chin. "He must have had a good reason to get triggered like that."

"Guys!" Winnie called out to them, her voice a little off as she was still holding her nose to keep it from bleeding. She was running down the stairs, looking beside herself with worry.

"Winnie? What's wrong? What happened to you?" Phantasma asked, looking a little frightened.

"Lincoln accidently got me in the nose." Winnie explained. "But then Silas burst in and tried to hurt him!"

"What!?" Tanis, Sibella, Elsa, Phanty, Gila, Lucy, and Wendy all exclaimed in horror. Ignatius just raised his eyebrows, but had a slight smirk on his face, while Milly simply frowned.

"Scrappy stopped him, but then he challenged Lincoln to a fight tonight. Outside, after lights out."

"Silas wants to fight him? Lincoln would get destroyed…" The little martian commented, which earned her several glares. "...don't give me those looks. It's a plain, simple fact."

"I hate to admit it, but she's right." The injured werewolf girl told her friends. "Silas has Lincoln WAY outmatched in strength…"

"Lincoln wouldn't really fight him...would he?" Little Tanis asked, her eyes all misty.

"That depends on if he has a choice." The teen vampire boy interjected. "Even if he just refused to go to the fight, I suspect Silas would just come looking for him. Eventually, he would have to face him."

"Maybe not." Sibella said, looking determined. "Maybe we can get him to listen to reason. With all of us, we might be able to get him to reconsider."

"I'll go check on Lincoln." Lucy said, headed for her brother's room.

"So will I." Tanis said, chasing off after her.

* * *

Up in his room, Lincoln was flopped on his back on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. The way he saw it, he was doomed. He had nearly bought it fighting Sigmund, but this guy...he seemed even stronger than the monster hunter. One punch and the young human would be out like a light. And he couldn't even hurt the monster hunter even at his physical best. What hope did he have against a mountain of a monster like Silas? Sure, he could use his magic, but he didn't want to hurt him. He didn't even want to fight him. What was he going to do? While he was pondering this very question, there was a knock on his door. "Unless you're out for my blood, come in..." He looked toward the curtain in front of the door, which shifted aside when Lucy and Tanis crossed to his half of the room. "...hi girls."

"Hi Lincoln…" Lucy said in a monotone.

"...are you doing alright, big brother?" The worried little mummy inquired.

"I guess...though how long that will last, I don't know…" The white haired boy groaned.

"You don't wish to fight him, do you, Lincoln?" His gothic sister asked.

"No...but somehow, I don't think I have much in the way of a choice." The one son responded. "If I don't meet him as he wants, he'll probably get even angrier and come after me anyway...which would be easy since we're roommates…" He said, burying his face into his pillow. "But if I do go out there...I don't stand a chance, physically."

"...if it helps, Lincoln...the others are going to try to talk to Silas…" Tanis informed him as she moved over beside his bed, gently patting his arm. "They'll talk him out of it…"

"Thanks Tanis...but somehow, I doubt it." He replied pessimistically. "Silas doesn't appear to be the type to let go of an idea once he's got it into his head…"

"I wish I could give you some advice on this one, Lincoln…" Lucy lamented, sitting beside him on his bed.

"...I appreciate it all the-wait." He suddenly sat up, the pillow falling into his lap. "Lynn!"

"Lynn?" Tanis looked a little confused.

"If anyone can give me advice on how to handle any kind of fight, it's her." He quickly grabbed his phone and hastily called her on the auto dialer. "Come on...come on…"

"Good day, elder brother." Came the voice of Lisa on the other end.

"Lisa? Er, hello. What are you doing with Lynn's phone?"

"I'm afraid Lynn is otherwise preoccupied with an exhibition soccer match between her team and the Royal Woods Elementary team."

"Isn't that a little unfair?" Lincoln asked with a raised eyebrow. "I mean, they're like two to three years older."

"True, but that doesn't seem to hinder them in the slightest. What they lack in overall power, they make up for in agility and energy."

"I see...I was really hoping to be able to talk to Lynn…"

"Is something the matter, Lincoln?"

"Kinda...yes." The one son admitted. "Silas is really angry at me over an accident and now he wants to fight it out."

"I see. Have you informed Miss Grimwood or Mr Van Ghoul about this yet?"

"No, but I don't want to get him in trouble. He's not a bad guy. Besides, that would make him even more angry. I also don't want to fight him, yet I don't think that's really an option…"

"Quite the conundrum, I admit. How do you, to coin a phrase, stack up to this Silas?"

"...imagine Mr Universe for a moment." He said, pausing a moment to let Lisa get that mental image into her head. "Now, imagine Lily being put against him."

"Lincoln! That's not true!" Tanis scolded him, upset he was putting himself down like that.

"...Lana then." Lincoln amended.

"...truly a David and Goliath scenario, no matter what." Lisa commented. "Though I am afraid that, with regard to fisticuffs, I will be of little to no help to you, elder brother...and I suspect Lynn will be at this game for a good, long while."

"Sigh...well, thank you anyway, Lisa…"

"However, I can offer you some sage advice. I realize in your position, it may not seem much, but it's the least I can do." The brainy four year old said over the phone. "Because I personally believe that the greatest victories come from the battle not fought."

"The battle not fought?"

"Indeed, or as Sun Tzu has said in the Art of War, 'The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting'."

"...you've read the Art of War?"

"Very fascinating read. I highly recommend it." A few soft voices could be heard on the other end of the phone, though Lincoln couldn't make them out. "Apologies, Lincoln, but I must go. We wish you the best. Please do say hello to Lucy for us."

"Thanks...I will. See you, Lisa." The white haired boy glumly as he hung up the phone. "...the family says hi, Lucy."

"Didn't go well?" The raven haired child asked, not having heard the conversation.

"Lynn was at a soccer game and couldn't come to the phone. Lisa tried to help, though." He responded, putting his elbows upon his pillow and his head in his hands.

"What'd she say?"

"She said the greatest victory came from the battle not fought." He related to his magical younger sister.

"Sounds like she's suggesting you don't fight him." Tanis said. "And I for one agree."

"So do I...but whether I do or not, the situation is going to get worse...and it's not like I can be there, but not be there…" He said absently. A few seconds later, his eyes opened fully as he sat up, putting his hand to his chin as one side of his mouth slightly curled upward. Lucy and Tanis both knew this look all too well; he had an idea and was formulating a plan.

* * *

Earlier, out on the school grounds, the Grimwood Girls were attempting to speak to Silas as he prepared himself for the upcoming fight and tried to blow off some steam as well. To accomplish this, he took to hurling logs across the lawn, breaking them in half with his punches and stomps, and crushing boulders into pebbles, growing them back into boulders, then crushing them down again. The girls were forced to keep their distance to avoid getting potentially hit by wood or stone shrapnel, with Ignatius watching from the school porch. It certainly didn't bode well for Lincoln if this fight were to occur. "Silas, please, be reasonable." Sibella said, in a vain attempt to sway him.

"Ah'm being as reasonable as the scoundrel deserves!" The minotaur bellowed, picking up a rock and crushing it to dust between his hands. The vampiress winced at that. If he could do that to a rock, she didn't want to think what would happen to her human love.

"Come on, big guy. It was an accident." Winnie told him. She had taken the opportunity to get cleaned up before they went out there, though there were still hints of the bloody nose she had on her snout. "You've put holes in the walls of the gym tower before during an intense workout. It's the same thing." Silas clearly didn't see it that way, the half beast boy snorting in anger. Phantasma, being the only one not at risk of getting pelted by debris if she got close, hovered closer to him, her eyes all big and her hands held tightly together as if she were praying.

"Please, Silas...Lincoln would never hurt any of us on purpose…" She pleaded to him. "He cares very deeply about us, and we care about him…"

"Peh! None of ye were up there!"

"Up till I was on the ground, neither were you!" Winnie snapped back, her own temper rising. "And that's all you saw! The rest is just you making assumptions!" Silas' eyes flashed with pure wrath as he put his fist through a massive log, then ripped it clean in half. Wendalyn held Winnie back, who was about to reach the 'knock some sense into him' portion of negotiations. Sibella herself was getting there too. With a stone cold glare, she stormed right up to the raging minotaur.

"Now you see here!" The lavender vampiress said sternly. "If you think any of us are going to let you hurt Lincoln, you've got another thing coming! Like Phanty said, we care very deeply about him and will not stand idly by and allow some BRUTE to cause him harm. So consider yourself warned...if you lay so much as a FINGER on Lincoln...you'll have to answer to me!" Her words of warning, while rather shocking to her friends, seemed to have little effect on the bull headed bull boy. In fact, it seemed to add fuel to the fire of his fury.

"Brute!? BRUTE!?" He bellowed, taking a single stomp forward toward the vampiress. Sibella flinched and stepped back in fright, feeling she just made a critical strategic error. "Ah ain't the one to gave little Winnie a bloody nose! He was! He hurt her! Just like the humans who hurt me and me Mum! Just like the monster hunter who tried to take me freakin' life!" He was outright shouting into her face now.

'Monster hunter?' Sibella wondered in her head. She had heard on his first day from Winnie and Elsa that Silas had been injured before by a hunter, but he had never said until now that it was a monster hunter who had attacked him. Before things could escalate any further, a beam of violet light zipped past between them, missing the minotaur by inches. The two stepped back away from each other, turning to see Milly pointing her ray gun at Silas.

"That will be quite enough of that." She said calmly as she walked over to her vampiric associate. "Any further hostile moves and you will learn what complete paralysis feels like." She cautioned him as she brought Sibella back to the group. Silas stamped a little in anger, but he didn't try anything further, instead returning to his exercises. "Come, earthlings. We're wasting our time here."

"But…" Phantasma started to say.

"But nothing. He's too angry to listen to reason, and our attempts to sway him now are only making matters worse." The little martian said flatly. "If we're going to accomplish anything, he needs to calm down. Give him a few hours alone time." She instructed as she walked up the stairs. She paused a moment to look at Ignatius. "...your assistance was most appreciated." She told him sarcastically before the pink alien girl strolled inside the school building.

* * *

The next few hours, the tension was thick as day old oatmeal in the school. Neither Lincoln nor Silas came to dinner that evening (most likely believing the other would be there), which greatly concerned the head mistress and the other girls. However, none of them told her about the fight; they didn't want to risk getting Lincoln in serious trouble too. Miss Grimwood didn't tolerate fighting in her school, after all. And during classes, Silas would take sideways, hateful glances toward Lincoln, while the one son seemed distracted. When asked, neither one said anything other than "Everything is fine". Soon enough, the time came. The moon was high over the school, and it was past curfew. The rules didn't necessarily state that all students had to be in bed and asleep by this time (sometimes school work required late nights, afterall), but no students were typically allowed on the school grounds after dark. This was the last thought on Silas' mind as he waited in the dimly lit night for his opponent, stretching his arms as he waited. His boiling anger had reduced to a simmer at this point, giving him a little more clarity of thought. 'In hindsight, shoulda told him a specific time.' He thought to himself. 'No matter. The lad isn't waiting me out. I could stand here all night if ah have ta.' He could hear footsteps on the drawbridge behind him, forcing him to turn sharply. Instead of Lincoln, he saw Sibella, Phantasma, Winnie, Elsa, Suki, Gila, and Wendy walking right toward him. "What're ya doing out here, lassies? Ye know ye shouldn't be out this late."

"Neither should you, yet here we are." Sibella retorted, a hint of ice in her voice.

"Silas, we wanted to give you another opportunity to just walk away from this." Elsa started, taking the lead on this one. "This is a pointless fight, and you know it."

"Sorry, Elsa, but me mind is set. There's no turning back now." He responded stubbornly. "Not that I expect that cowardly human to show up."

"Sorry I'm late." Once more, the minotaur boy jumped and turned, along with the assembled Grimwood girls. Coming from the direction of the garden, dressed in a white karate gi and black slippers, was Lincoln, a look of near absolute focus on his face. "Matches was patrolling outside our room, so I had to climb down."

"Lincoln, no…" Sibella muttered fearfully.

"Well well...look who decided to show…" Silas spat as he stormed over to the boy nearly half his size. "And here ah thought ye would have scampered away like a frightened bunny. That maybe ye thought punching wee lassies was alright and dandy, but in a real fight, ye become a shrinking little violet!" Winnie scowled at the back of the minotaur when he made that wee little lassies comment.

"...I'm not that little…"

"Actually, Silas, I was hoping we could still talk this over." Lincoln told him, his arms behind his back as he looked up at him. "I don't want to fight you, Silas. I don't want to be your enemy. I never did. All I wanted was to be your friend."

"Codswallop." The minotaur retorted derisively.

"I mean it. I have no quarrel with you, which is why I'm not going to fight you." The one son said as if that was final. The ghoul girls all gasped in horror at what he said, while Silas looked utterly gobsmacked.

"Yer...not gonna fight?" He asked, hardly believing his ears. "Do ye take me for a damned idjit!? Why would ye even be out here iffin' ye had no intention of fightin'!?" He started to yell, getting closer to the young human, who looked back with the utmost composure. "I see what yer doing, human! Ye think ye can play one of yer cute tricks on me! Get in me head! Well, it won't work! Ah ain't stupid! Ah ain't about ta fall prey ta some cheap tricks by a low down sack a maggots like yerself! Those are the tactics of a coward, and that's exactly what ye are, aren't ya!? A coward! A wee babe ascared of the big bad monster!" He was right in Lincoln's face now as he continued to yell insults at him. "Ah bet ye went and wet those fancy pants pajamas of yers, didn't ya!? Didn't ya!? Ye weak kneed, noodle armed, pajama wearing, thumb sucking, waste of skin!" The middle Loud just stared right back into Silas' eyes following his brief tirade, silence falling between them for several seconds before he responded.

"Now you're just being silly." The minotaur recoiled in shock at his comment, having not expected something so simple and, in essence, weak as a comeback, and yet it stung. It even got a few of the girl's giggling softly too, which just got his dander right back up.

"Silly, eh!? How silly do ye find this!?" He suddenly swung his fist downward at Lincoln, who artfully leapt backward to dodge the attack as all the girls on the drawbridge gasped. Silas was surprised at Lincoln's show of agility, but recovered enough to throw another powerful hook. The one son ducked under this attack and side stepped around Silas to keep him guessing. The minotaur may have been powerful, but his punches weren't half as fast as Lynn's or Winnie's. Not only that, but in his anger, he was telegraphing each swing, meaning Lincoln could seem them coming a mile away. This meant he was easily able to evade Silas' furious assault with some fancy footwork, some leans, dodges and a few rolls as well.

"Yeah! That's it, Linc! Bob, dart, weave!" Winnie called out excitedly, moving about and throwing air punches as if she were part of the fight too. The others didn't dare say anything, for fear they might distract Lincoln, or worse, alert Miss Grimwood. The half bull teen was quickly growing frustrated. Not only was the young lady whose honor he was defending cheering for her assailant, but the little pest was really quick. He couldn't lay a hand on him.

'Ah give the lad this...he can move.' Silas thought as Lincoln did a backwards roll to avoid getting headbutt. 'He may not be as big a creampuff as ah thought. Just means ah gotta stop holdin' back…' The monster boy feinted with a left, then swung a fast right. That punch almost got him, but the white haired lad leaned back just enough to avoid getting hit, right before Silas threw a barrage of punches; each one thrown with all of his strength behind it. However, even when he put everything he had into it, his attacks weren't any faster. Lincoln had little trouble bobbing, swaying and ducking away from whatever the burly monster boy threw at him. Winnie grinned as she watched. She was worried about her friend, of course, but this fight was exciting to watch.

At least, she thought so the first few minutes. By the five minute mark, it was starting to get tedious. Silas remained on the offensive, throwing powerhouse punches and devastating kicks every opportunity he could. It would mean trouble for Lincoln...if he could hit the young man. He took full advantage of the size difference and his agility both from his training and living in the Loud House for most of his life. He couldn't be touched by the angry minotaur...but he also never threw a single punch. He had a few opportunities to strike back from Winnie's perspective, but he never took it. No punches, no kicks, no magic, nothing. It was frustrating for her to watch. However, it was clear Lincoln's tactic was having an effect on Silas: it was getting him very tired. He was wasting a lot of energy putting everything into every attack, and it was draining his energy quick. Oddly, the white haired boy didn't appear to be getting tired. 'Ah don't get it. How is it ah never touched this sneaky little punk…?' The horned fighter wondered as Lincoln evaded two sweeping punches. He threw one more very wild punch, which didn't even touch the human boy and caused him to turn from the force. However, this was a ruse. The moment his back was to the middle Loud, he kicked back with incredible force toward him. He couldn't see what happened, but he couldn't feel any kind of impact. It seemed impossible to him. How could he have avoided that? No one was that fast. He looked back and there was he was; standing tall with a stone faced expression.

"Silas, please, let's just put an end to this." Lincoln calmly requested. "We can go back inside before anyone else sees us and talk this over." With one quick move, Silas rejected his request as he lunged at the one son, slamming his fist into the ground where he once stood. This move put a small crater in the dirt and the musclebound minotaur on his knees, almost completely exhausted. He expected Lincoln to take advantage of his weakness, bracing himself for attack. However, no assault came. He slowly looked up, seeing Lincoln standing there with his hand extended. He was trying to help him back up. The boy bull hybrid could hardly believe it. He was dog tired, but his opponent was still standing. He was doing all the fighting and he was losing, while the white haired boy hadn't made so much as a move against him. It was embarrassing. It was infuriating. With the last of his power, he charged forward with a bellow, his horns going right into Lincoln's stomach. The girls all screamed as rammed the human boy...and went through him like he was made of air. In fact, the Loud warlock looked like he didn't feel a thing. Meanwhile, Silas slammed his head right into the wall circling the school grounds, leaving deep cracks in the stonework. Lincoln faded from where he once stood, the Grimwood Girls all with looks of shock on their faces while the minotaur staggered about on the grass for a bit after the impact.

"What's that, Ma…? Dinner's ready?" He asked in a dazed. "...coming Ma…" He groaned before he fell right onto his front. It was at this moment that Lincoln emerged from the garden, in his usual outfit with a bit of a smile on his face.

"It...it was an illusion." Sibella commented quietly.

"That little sneak…" Winnie said, grinning. "No wonder he didn't fight back. It would have been a dead giveaway." The true Lincoln Loud walked over to the fallen minotaur, who was recovering from the impact.

"...ye tricked me…" He moaned, looking up at the human boy.

"Sorry, Silas. It's like I said, I didn't want to fight you." He explained to him, once more offering a hand out to help him up. The minotaur slowly reached up, taking hold of his hand. At first, he gripped his hand tight, getting ready to pull him down and give him the pummeling of his life. However, Silas didn't have the energy to try it. He sighed, his face against the grass. As the white haired boy was helping him up…

"Lincoln Loud and Silas McRowds!" Everything seemed to freeze in time as Miss Grimwood's angry voice cut through the air. Silas slowly looked up while Lincoln looked over his shoulder, seeing the disapproving face of the middle aged witch headed right for them. "I want to see the two of you in my office. Immediately." She informed them, putting a hand on each of their heads before all three of them teleported back into the school.

"...oh no…" Winnie groaned, knowing this was bad. Very bad.

* * *

Back inside, Lincoln and Silas found themselves sitting in chairs in front of the headmistress' desk, while Miss Grimwood reappeared behind her desk. She looked between the two of them, disappointment clear on her face. Despite being somewhat bigger than her, Silas felt very small under her gaze and was utterly terrified. In his mind, he was as good as hamburger. Best case scenario, he would only get detention with his mother getting informed (which was scary enough to begin with). Worst case, he was looking down the barrel of expulsion. He was really starting to sweat as he glanced toward Lincoln. To his surprise, the young man seemed pretty calm considering the circumstances. 'Well, of course he's calm...he didn't start the fight. He didn't even fight...if anything, he could throw the whole thing on me and it'd probably stick…' The minotaur looked down at the floor, shaking slightly as Miss Grimwood finally spoke.

"I have to say...I did not expect this from either of you." She said, in a calm but stern voice. "Out after curfew...that alone is bad enough...but fighting on school property too…" She slowly shook her head. "You were both such good boys. Never, until now, have I had any trouble with either of you...but now the two of you...getting into a fist fight right out on the grounds...what do you have to say for yourselves?" She asked them before waiting for their attempt to defend themselves. She doubted that they could have a good enough reason for what happened. In her mind, there were many reasons for fighting, but no excuses. Silas didn't say a thing when she looked at him. Lincoln, however, cleared his throat.

"Miss Grimwood, if I may…" He started, sitting forward in his chair a bit.

"Go ahead, Mr Loud…"

"You say the two of us were fighting out there...but may I ask what gave you that impression?" He inquired. Both the headmistress and Silas looked at the young man with very strange expressions, as if they were wondering if he really just asked that. However, Miss Grimwood had an answer for him as she pulled a cell phone from her desk drawer.

"I was presented video evidence of the fight from an anonymous source." She responded firmly. The white haired boy frowned when he saw the phone. It looked very familiar to him.

"...that's my phone." He said.

"Your phone?" The magical principal was surprised to hear this.

"Yer phone?" Silas inquired.

"Yes. I had left it in my room." Lincoln explained, sounding concerned and puzzled. Abigail looked down at the phone, and then to him. She was about to ask further, but one thing at a time.

"We'll deal with that in just a moment, Mr Loud." She said. "Let's stay on topic for now. This phone was sent under my door moments ago, and on it was video evidence of the two of you engaged in a fist fight just outside. That is what gave me the impression that you two were fighting." The human boy nodded slightly. To the surprise of Miss Grimwood and Silas, he didn't seem at all bothered by this.

"I see. Well, in spite of what the video taken on my phone may suggest, Miss Grimwood, I assure you that no fight happened outside tonight." Utter silence followed this statement, Silas looking at him like he had lost his mind and Miss Grimwood with as 'seriously…?' look. However, Lincoln still had the look of confidence around him, and the headmistress knew the boy wasn't one to say something unless he meant it. But how could he back THAT up?

"...very well, Mr Loud. I'll bite." She said, resting her elbows on the desk, her fingers together. "...let's hear your explanation as to why that was not a fight."

"Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but a fight is defined as two people engaged in a verbal or physical argument, am I right?" The motherly witch nodded, not sure where he was going with this. "Alright. And may I ask...can you sense magic through videos?"

"...no, of course not. That's an impossibility." She replied. "The only way that could work is if the video itself was affected."

"Good to know. Have you seen the entire video?"

"I admit I have not. I only reached the point when the brawl started when I heard the girls scream." The middle aged witch confessed. "I feared the worst at that point."

"Perfectly understandable. May we see the video in its entirety, please?" Lincoln asked politely. Miss Grimwood nodded, bringing up the video on his phone. 'How come my phone didn't ask for my password?' The one son wondered in his head as the video started to play. From the angle, it looked like it was taken from the second floor of the school, looking down on the scene. It was just at the moment when the young man arrived on the scene. The dialogue couldn't really be heard, at least until Silas started shouting at Lincoln. The minotaur looked away, covering his face, still convinced he was done for. Then, the fists started flying. Miss Grimwood looked sternly at the middle Loud, as if daring him to say what she thought he was going to; that because he wasn't fighting back, it wasn't a fight. However, he kept silent, watching things unfold. He considered pointing out the very different clothes, but he didn't think that was important enough, so he kept quiet. Then came the moment when Silas kicked back at the human boy. Miss Grimwood's eyes widened and Lincoln smiled ever so slightly. His hooved foot had gone THROUGH his stomach, but the one son didn't even react. It was barely noticeable from that distance. Possibly she was seeing things. The video played on, up until the point where the half bull teen charged his way right through the Lincoln illusion, which is right where the video ended. Abigail just blinked for a few seconds before looking back at the human boy. "As you can see, Miss Grimwood." Lincoln stated, as if giving a closing argument. "The me in the video was not actually me, but an illusion and, therefore, doesn't count as a second person. And a fight of one person isn't a fight; it's shadow boxing." Miss Grimwood's mouth hung open for a moment as she looked at Lincoln. Then, she started laughing. Softly at first, but greater her mirth became each passing second. Silas uncovered his face to look at her, wondering what was so funny, while Lincoln's face fell. Was his defense that laughable? Now he was getting worried.

"Oh my...Lincoln Loud, have you ever considered becoming a lawyer?" She said after she had a chance to calm down.

"Not really…" He replied, still uncertain if her laughter was a good or bad thing.

"You really should. You'd be great at it." She informed him as she tried to regain her composure, her motherly smile in place of her disappointed frown. "I must admit, Mr Loud, you've got me. You're absolutely right. Since the Illusory Individual Act of 1508, illusions of people don't count as people in the eyes of the law. Therefore, there was only one person out there fighting, and that doesn't qualify as a fight." She told them. The minotaur lad was dumbfounded. Did this human just get them out of trouble? Did he just get HIM out of trouble!? When he technically did start it!? He didn't understand it. "Well played, Mr Loud. However, there is still the matter of being out after curfew."

"...yeah. I...don't really have a defense for that one." Lincoln admitted with a sheepish shrug.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't. However, as this is your first offense; both of you...I think I can let you both off with a warning." She informed them. "It's for your own safety after all, boys."

"Yes, Miss Grimwood." The white haired boy responded.

"Aye, Miss Grimwood." The minotaur said, his voice very shaky.

"Very well. Off you go, boys." She said softly, handing Lincoln his phone before waving them off. As the two of them left the office, Lincoln looked on his phone, checking the settings. Somehow, the password protection setting was shut off. He knew that he didn't shut it off. How did this happen?

"Why'd ye do it, lad?" Silas asked as the two of them started walking towards their room.

"Huh? What do you mean?" The one son asked, his attention averted from his phone.

"Why'd ye lie ta Miss Grimwood like that?"

"What lie? I didn't tell a single lie back there."

"Yeah, ye did. Ye told her it wasn't a fight, but I fully intended ta fight ye out there."

"What was intended and what happened are two different things, Silas. Besides, I thought you'd be happy to get off the hook for fighting."

"Ah am. Don't get me wrong, ah'm thrilled ta not get hit fer that. Ah've heard Miss Grimwood doesn't take too kindly ta that." The burly half bull teen said. "...but ah just don't understand why ye did it. Ah was ready ta mash ya into pudding, yet ye pulled my hide outta the fire."

"Because, like I keep on saying, I don't want to be your enemy, Silas." The one son explained, turning his head to look up at the monstrous teen. "I never did."

"...ah'm starting ta believe that now…" He responded, feeling even worse about his actions earlier. "...sorry about losing me temper like that, lad."

"Don't worry about it, Silas. I probably would have been just as angry if the roles were reversed, though I admit I don't think I would have slammed you against the wall." He looked the minotaur over from head to toe for a moment. "...not that these noodle arms could have, even if I tried." He joked, which got a soft laugh from Silas. "Besides, I know what it's like to have a temper...well, not personally. Three of my sisters have pretty short fuses. Lola especially can be scary when she gets angry."

"Three sisters, plus the wee witch and princess...how big is yer family?"

"No one told you? Well, it's me, my parents, and ten sisters."

"By Echidna's spines! That's a big family…" Silas exclaimed in surprise.

"Heh. Yeah." Lincoln responded, kind of amused at this point how others reacted to learning how large his family was at this point. "Do you have any siblings?"

"Nah. It's pretty much just been me Mum and ah." Silas explained. "And believe me, it hasn't been easy. The humans really made things rough fer us."

"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that." The white haired boy said, an expression of sympathy on his face. "Is that why you don't like humans?"

"Nah. At least, not the only reason." The muscular monster explained. "What really cinched it was when they sent a hunter ta slay me."

"A hunter?"

"Aye. A cruel one he was. Nearly killed me too."

"A monster hunter attacked Grimwood's a few months back." Lincoln replied, his face hardening as he remembered that day. "He almost killed me trying to shoot a stake into Sibella…"

"Hold up…" The minotaur lad said, grabbing his arm to stop him as he stopped. "The hunter really attacked ye? Really?"

"Well, he said he didn't want to...but I wasn't going to let him hurt any of my friends or my girlfriends. Granted, I was no match for him…"

"Aye...that fella was inhuman…"

"...but it didn't stop me from trying." The one son continued. "It wasn't enough, though. He managed to immobilize most of us, including Sibella by pinning her to the wall with arrows. He then tried to shoot a stake through her heart...but I got in the way, catching it in my shoulder."

"Bloody hell...so that's what the wee Lily meant by 'Bad man hurt Lincoln'..." Silas mused out loud. "Ah bet that left a nasty scar…"

"Not really, thanks to my friends and my family." Lincoln revealed, pulling his shirt and robe to show the half bull boy his shoulder. There was hardly any sign anything happened there. "Together, they cast a healing spell to mend the wound. I still needed a transfusion, but thankfully, I pulled through."

"...ye know...t'was that very same monster hunter...Sigmund Lesrec...what did this to me." Silas admitted, kneeling and showing Lincoln his leg scar.

"I had a feeling, after you called him a cruel one." The middle Loud said, wincing at the wound. "Yeesh. That looked bad…"

"Aye. Ah still kind of limp as a result, but it could have been much worse." The minotaur said before standing up. "Thank Typhus we won't see or hear from that fiend again."

"Agreed." Lincoln said with a nod and a smile. A moment of awkward silence followed, before the minotaur spoke again.

"Ah noticed ye had a MuscleFish poster on her half of the room. Are ye a fan?"

"Yeah. Not quite as big as Ace Savvy, but I'm still a pretty big fan of the comics and games." The white haired lad said with a bit of a smirk. "You?"

"Aye. Biggest fan in all Scotland." Silas stated, his chest puffed out proudly. "Not so much the comics, but the shows, movies and especially the games."

"Is that so? I have the latest game on my computer back in my room."

"Ye don't say? Ye any good, lad?"

"The town champ." Lincoln bragged, omitting the times Ronnie Anne kicked his hide in the earlier games. "Why? Up for a challenge?"

"One side. New champ coming through!" Silas said, hurrying past Lincoln, eager to get back to their room so they could start playing.

"That's what you think!" The one son called out, chasing after him.

* * *

_AN: __Special thanks to lampe . andrews1 for the idea of the Silas/Lincoln interaction sharing a slight similarity to the Samurai Jack/Scotsman initial interaction. Also, I apologize for skipping over the dream sequence. I intended to write one in, but I couldn't think of what to write for it. After figuratively beating my head against a wall for a fashion, I decided to just I'd just let it go and try and write a proper one later, time permitting. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the story and have a merry christmas._


	11. Chapter 11: Truth is Stranger

_AN: I can't say I'll all that thrilled with this chapter. It was a serious struggle to get through. However, it's been too long since the last update and the other chapter I'm working on (a Zanya chapter) I'm still trying to decide where to go with it. So I decided to roll with it and see where the dice land on this one. Hope you all enjoy it. Next chapter will hopefully be shorter, either going to Zanya's side of things or starring M-149 aka Milly._

_And to answser your question, Ironchef, I haven't seen them yet. However, I did consider something similar earlier, with Lincoln and the Grimwood Students doing their own web show. Just haven't gotten it off the ground yet._

_On a final, side note, I decided I'd be keeping the poll for Louds Adventures in Micha open until Friday, to give a few more days to get a few more votes and because it's a day off for me, giving me more time to work on that chapter. If anyone else would like to join in, the poll is in my profile, asking 'What Type of Pokemon Should Lincoln's Starter Be (excluding dragons)?'_

_Special thanks to alexpv22 for the inspiration for the primary plot of this chapter. I know it wasn't exactly what you had suggested, but here's hoping you like it. That's enough out of me for now. Thank you for your time and enjoy._

* * *

Truth is stranger

Down in the dimly lit science lab, the Loud Warlock, Elsa Frankenteen, Ignatius Morvis, and Tanis were huddled around the examination table, with Miss Grimwood standing in the back observing. If one were to take a look at them, you would think they were performing some kind of surgery. They all had face masks and gloves on (except the mystical headmistress), with Tanis wearing a little nurse's cap on her head. Elsa cut something with a pair of snips before fiddling around with something else, then nodding lightly. Lincoln started to sweat as he started to set some unseen things in place. The little mummy wiped his forehead before handing him a pair of pliers. "Thanks, Tanis."

"Welcome" she replied softly. The one son toys around with some unknown object before he set the pliers aside. Ignatius applied a hammer and chisel to something solid for a few seconds, looked it over with a critical eye, then chiseled it again. After one more once over, he seemed satisfied.

"I'm ready on this end." He informed them.

"Same here." Elsa told them, squinting a bit.

"I think I've done all I can." Lincoln said, stepping back to look at his own work.

"Then I suppose it's up to me." Abigail said as she stepped forward. She raised her hands, which started to glow with a magic aura. "Eccoru ectavar palamas!" She chanted, magical lightning shooting from her hands onto something on the table. The next few seconds were tense among the students as they watched. Suddenly, the sound of static was heard. The sound came from a hand chiseled crystal, shaped like a large, professionally cut diamond, and the size of Lincoln's laptop. The crystal had wires connected to the back. The four children leaned in closer as the visual snow clouded the surface of the crystal for a moment. Then, suddenly, a large stone idol's face appeared.

"Legends of the Hidden Temple!" The idol declared. Lincoln, Elsa and Tanis all cheered, while Ignatius and Miss Grimwood just smiled with satisfaction. After the one son and reanimated teen separated from their celebration hug, the white haired boy turned to the fourth wall with a big smile.

"I bet you're all wondering what this is all about." He said to the readers. "Well, as you guys and gals probably know, Grimwood's didn't have TV or internet for the longest time. We still don't have internet, but we managed to convince Miss Grimwood to allow us to have cable here…"

"Provided we follow a few rules." Tanis interjected, walking over to see who her honorary big brother was talking to.

"Right you are, Tanis." He replied, gently patting her head around her adorable little hat. "We're supposed to cover the payments ourselves, but most of us already agreed we'd chip in for the monthly payments. We can't watch it during class periods, nor after lights out."

"Can't have any of us up all night watching the crystal." The little mummy piped up.

"But otherwise, we're welcome to watch it as long as there aren't many fights. Fortunately, we got a pretty good deal." Lincoln explained. "We have the basic channels, so I can watch ARGGH, Dream Boat, and Legends of the Hidden Temple, Discovery for Elsa, a few sports channels for Winnie and Silas, a few Transylvanian channels for Ignatius, and a soap opera channel. Not sure who requested that; it was submitted anonymously, but if they chip in their share, it's fine by us."

"And just in time for the weekend." Elsa commented with a smile.

"Speaking of just in time." Ignatius cut in, looking at his pocket watch. "It's almost time for the evening news back home." Lincoln nodded and handed the remote to the vampire teen. Part of the agreement for his assistance was that he could watch the Transylvanian news every day. The one son would have liked to get a chance to see one of his favorite shows, but a deal was a deal.

"We should probably get some kind of plan together, so we can avoid scheduling conflicts." The reanimated young lady reasoned as Ignatius changed the station on the cable box.

"Good idea, Elsa." Miss Grimwood complimented her. "And a very fine job, children. A well executed fusion of magic and mortal technology."

"Thank you, Miss Grimwood, and thank you for your help." The white haired young man said with an appreciative smile.

"You're all quite welcome." She responded with a smile of her own. "If you'll excuse me, I shall take my leave. I have some calls to make." She added before she departed, with Lincoln, Tanis and Elsa discussing where they would put their new tv after Ignatius was finished watching the news.

* * *

As spring break came closer, most students were making plans for what they would do during break. Grimwood's wasn't one of them (they didn't really do spring break), but neither was New Calloway's. The Colonel rarely gave his students a break, with the exceptions of during the major holidays. Just part of being in military school. However, that didn't mean Colonel Calloway didn't do something special for his cadets during this time. It was traditional for him to invite the families of his cadets to the facility during the start of the Easter holiday. Naturally, most of the cadets were over the moon about it. While they have written to their families frequently, they hadn't seen their families in a good, long while. It was the talk of the mess hall that afternoon, two days before Easter Sunday. "It'll be great to see my mother again," Tug commented to his friends, a genuine smile on his face.

"I know what you mean," Tracey said, sitting down next to the blond haired squad leader of Old Calloway. "I haven't seen my Dad since last summer."

"My folks couldn't come," Grunt said, though he didn't look too upset. "They're both overseas. But my Grandma will be here. I think you guys would like her."

"I'm sure we will," Mel spoke up in a monotone. "We've yet to meet parents we haven't gotten on well with." Most of the rest of the group nodded as they continued to chat to one another about their parents. However, one young man was oddly quiet during the whole thing. In fact, he seemed downcast about the subject. Baxter sat with his head in his hands, hands over his eyes. He hadn't even touched his breakfast.

"Hey, Baxter...you alright, my friend?" Orville asked, his head tilted somewhat.

"No…" He replied sadly. Hearing this caused all conversation at the table to stop, all eyes looking to him.

"What's the matter, little buddy?" Fanny inquired. "Your parents aren't coming?"

"That would be great, actually…" The small child replied, shocking his friends. "Don't get me wrong...I love my parents...but my mother...she's just impossible," He groaned.

"Most parents can be," Tracey responded with a shrug. "I mean, my own mother tends to pry a lot. What's the-?"

"My mother believes everything is a lie…" He interrupted her, almost in a whining tone.

"...say what?"

"I'm not sure I follow," Miquel said, looking as confused as the other cadets. "Are you saying she thinks everything in the world is a lie?"

"...yes and no...She believes everything contrary to what she herself believes is a foul, contemptible lie, and everything she believes is absolute truth...no exceptions," Baxter explained quietly. "...it's part of the reason I was sent to Calloway's. My mother thought I was lying all the time. My shoes were scuffed, I must have gotten into a fight. If I said anything else, I was lying and punished. I got a C instead of an A, I was failing. If my teacher backed me up, she was lying too."

"Dude…" Was all Tug could say, his mouth hanging open slightly. "...what about your Dad?"

"He's given up arguing with her by now...it's like trying to take down a brick wall with a feather...it's impossible…"

"We'll back you up, pal," Grunt said, patting the little guy on the back. "We'll tell your mother you're not-"

"No!" Baxter suddenly exclaimed, looking up in horror, startling his friends around him. "No...don't get involved...I don't want her to consider you all liars for backing me up. She might do something we'll all regret…" His eyes looked at them pleadingly.

"...alright, if you say so, Baxter…" Tug said with a sad sigh.

"Sorry guys...I just don't want you guys to get in big trouble just because you're trying to help me…" He explained, kind of slumping. "...she's really not a bad person, contrary to what I said...she's just…" He paused, unable to find a polite way to say what he was trying to say. His friends got it though and didn't push it. Meanwhile, across the mess hall, Brandon, his girlfriend and his clique were also talking about the upcoming parental meet up event.

"So, your parents aren't coming, Brandy?" Diane asked of her alpha male beau.

"Nah. I don't think they even got the notice about this," He responded with a carefree shrug and a grin.

"...weren't you helping Captain Mallory send out the notices?" Whatever inquired, looking tired as she sat down with them. Brandon glared at her in reply.

"Finished with KP, Whatever?" Elsworth asked her, to which she simply shrugged.

"That's a shame. I don't think I ever met your parents."

"Well, what can you do?" Brandon said, turning his attention to his food.

"It's not that big a deal," Trader interjected, just as Jamal walked past their table. Diane gave him a friendly wave, while Jamal gave a nod of acknowledgement to her with a smile. After he had helped her improve her grades, the red headed teen had become more friendly with the taller boy, as well as his friends. A fact that Brandon didn't like, but he didn't dare do anything about it for risk of upsetting his girlfriend. "I mean, my folks aren't coming either. Business."

"What about you, Whatever?" Levi asked, checking his reflection in the polished table to make sure his hair was still slick and perfect.

"If they are coming, I won't see them, because I'm not leaving the barracks that day," She replied flatly.

"That won't go well with the Colonel at all."

"Whatever."

* * *

A few days passed, and the big day had arrived. The grounds of the military academy were more crowded than ever with both students and parents, with Colonel Calloway and Captain Mallory supervising from the side. Jamal was giving a tour of the new facility to a few of the parents, including his own father (a big man built like a bodybuilder with a thin mustache and well kept short hair, dressed in business casual like most parents present), alongside Melinda. Diane was hugging both of her parents (both of which looked to be very wealthy, judging by the suits they were wearing). Mel had the slightest smile on his face as his mother (a small woman with her red hair done up in a bun, who seemed more connected with her emotions) hugged him, needing him to kneel so she could. Much like the commanding officers, Tug was kind of standing to the side, smiling a bit as he watched his classmates and friends reuniting with their families. So focused on this sight was he that he never saw the blonde haired woman walking right up behind him. "Guess who?" She said with a grin as she embraced him from behind.

"Hehehe. Hi, Mom," The old Calloway squad leader responded with a chuckle after she let him go. She was a woman of modest height, with short, somewhat curled yellow hair, wearing a maroon shirt with blue jeans, and a look of confidence about her.

"Hello, dear. Been keeping out of trouble?" She asked him, though she suspected she knew the answer.

"Don't I always?" The young man responded, which earned him an 'oh, really?' expression, paired with a slight smirk. "...well, maybe a little mischief…" He finally amended.

"Mmmhmmm…" she hummed, disbelief clear in her tone.

"...monkeyshines?" He asked, looking more sheepish. She still wasn't buying it. "Ok. It was chicanery…" He finally admitted, throwing his arms in the air.

"I thought as much," She replied, still smiling. "You always were up to something."

"Wonder where I got that from?" Tug replied in a snarky manner, the both of them laughing.

"Psst...hey." The mother and son turned their heads to see who was trying to whisper to them. Trader was standing there, holding an instant camera in his hands. "Commemorative photo of this touching reunion? Five bucks," He offered quietly.

"...seriously, Trader?" The exasperated Tug inquired, rolling his eyes.

"Guy's gotta make a living, blondie."

"Tell you what…" Tug's mother said, digging into her pants pocket for a moment. "...I'll give you two bits to leave us alone," She continued, flipping him a quarter.

"Deal. Pleasure doing business with you," He responded after catching the coin, hastily moving over to Fanny and her family.

"Was it really wise to encourage him, Mom?"

"It made him go away, didn't it?"

"...fair enough." About this time, a plump, silver haired old lady had strolled onto the grounds. She was somewhat short, wearing what looked like bifocals, a red and white blouse and a pink skirt that hung down to her ankles. She looked a little lost, so Captain Mallory decided to approach her.

"Good day, Ma'am."

"Oh, hello there, Miss...oh, excuse me," She started to say, but corrected herself upon seeing her rank on her arm. "...Captain. Have you seen my little Georgie?"

"Georgie?" She inquired, not having heard that name among her students. "I...don't think we have a student by that name here…"

"Blatherskite. He's been a cadet here for a few years now, since Old Calloway."

"Grandma!" Came the excited voice of Grunt as he ran over and threw his arms around his Granny.

"Oh, there's my Georgie!" The old lady said cheerfully, Not only did she hug Grunt back, but, much to second in command's shock, she lifted the boy right off the ground. She wasn't the only one to notice right. Brandon had considered going over to make fun of Grunt being called Georgie, but seeing this little old lady picking up a boy well over two hundred pounds made his survival instincts kick in and he decided to just keep his distance.

"Georgie?" Captain Mallory asked, a little lost herself now.

"You all didn't think Grunt was his real name, did you?" The elderly lady asked with a soft chuckle. "You silly folks," She then turned her attention back to her grandchild. "Still a healthy size, I see."

"All muscle, Grandma," The bulky, brawny boy said, patting his stomach proudly.

"Oh, I know, Georgie," She said, giggling a little. "Same here," Grunt's Granny added, patting her own midsection. "I may be up there in years, but I'm still solid as a brick wall." The captain was about to question that comment, but then she remembered what happened last time something like this happened, so she decided to keep it to herself.

* * *

While most of the rest of his classmates were meeting with their parents and the other folks as well, Baxter was kind of keeping his distance from the others as he kept an eye out for his parents. While he had gotten his friends to promise they wouldn't get involved when it came to his mother, but he thought it would be better to just keep her away from them, just to be safe. However, as more and more time passed from the time the last of the parents had arrived, he still hadn't seen hide nor hair of them. The young man wondered briefly if it was possible that she wasn't coming. Perhaps she couldn't make it. He was starting to relax when he heard the squeal of tires from outside the school yard. Poor Baxter tensed right back up; he recognized that hard braking. 'Oh no…' The young man thought. 'She's here…' Colonel Calloway flinched when he heard the screeching as well, looking toward the front gate. He also recognized that sound. He had only met Baxter's mother once, and found her to be quite overbearing. He hoped time had mellowed her a little as he moved to meet her. By the time he arrived, a somewhat thick woman with curly black hair had passed through the gate. She had small glasses with pointed rims on her face and wore a dark purple blouse and dress pants with black flats. She had silver bracelets on her wrists, a gold necklace around her neck, and a haughty smile on her face as she approached the Colonel.

"Ah. Mrs Pallas. A...pleasure to see you again," The Colonel said with a light bow of the head.

"Always a pleasure, Colonel," She replied in a voice just as haughty as her expression. She then turned her head toward her young son like a compass pointing to north. "And there's my little boy!" She added, a bit louder than necessary as she strolled toward him.

"H..hi Mom," Baxter said nervously with a pained smile on his face as the two hugged. Tug was watching from the corner of his eye as he spoke with his own mother. Given how they were acting right now, he wondered if maybe Baxter might have exaggerated a little.

"Has Baxter been behaving himself, Colonel?" She asked once she released her little son.

"Yes, Mrs Pallas. In fact, he's been one of the best behaved cadets I had in Old Calloway," The headmaster replied. The youngest of the crew cringed when he heard that, which surprised the Colonel.

"Now now. You don't need to cover for him, Colonel Calloway. You can be straight and upfront with me," She told him, gently shaking her finger at him. "I know full well how he can be."

"I beg your pardon?" The confused military school commanding officer inquired, kind of taken aback.

"Mom, how about I show you the new school?" Baxter offered hastily, taking her hand and trying to pull her away from the Colonel.

"Not now, Sweetie. Mommy's talking to the Colonel," She replied, gently pulling her hand from his grasp. "As I was saying, Colonel, I love the dear boy, but he's been a habitual liar ever since he could first talk. Wouldn't know the truth if it was waved in front of his face."

"Ah. Yes, I remember you telling me something to that extent when we first met," Colonel Calloway responded, a frown coming to his face. "However, I feel you may be mistaken-" Baxter gulped in fear and tried to signal to his headmaster to NOT engage in this conversation. It worked as well as one would expect. "-Baxter is a fine cadet. Certainly not what I'd call a liar."

"Colonel, I just told you, don't cover for him," She repeated, looking more upset and speaking louder, getting the attention of a few parents and cadets. "I know he's a liar, so don't try to deceive me."

"Madam, I am doing no such thing," The Colonel responded, his own anger building. Baxter groaned and face palmed, shaking his head. This was exactly what he feared would happen: the irresistible force meets the immovable object. "In my time teaching him, Baxter has given me no reason to doubt his words. I won't say he's the most honest cadet I've taught, but he's up there." Hearing this seemed to make Mrs Pallas absolutely furious as she leered right into the Colonel's burning gaze.

"Stop. Lying. To. Me," She ordered him, speaking loudly and slowly. The onlookers gasped in shock as the Colonel started to turn red.

"Did...she just call Colonel Calloway a liar right to his face…?" Fanny's father (a short, but very muscular man with a peach fuzz haircut) inquired, looking surprised.

"She did…" His tough daughter replied in awe. "Even I don't have the stones to do that…"

"We should take cover, shouldn't we?" Mrs Roper asked Tug, able to see where this was going as much as her son could.

"Yes. Yes we should," Her smart aleck son agreed, the two of them moving behind a stack of sandbags. He didn't think his headmaster would let things come to blows, but Baxter's mother...he wasn't sure. 'Looks like the little guy wasn't exaggerating…'

"Ma'am, if I may…" Captain Mallory interjected, striding over to support her lead officer with a stoic expression.

"Oh no...don't help…" Baxter moaned under his breath, covering his eyes to avoid seeing what he knew was going to happen.

"...who are you?" The mistrustful woman asked, glaring at the Captain.

"Captain Mallory, second in command here at New Calloway," The stern faced Captain responded. "Colonel Calloway is quite correct. Cadet Baxter is hardly one to lie habitually."

"Ugh! I don't believe this!" Baxter's mother said, throwing her arms up in disgust. "I sent my son here hoping he could have his habitual lying worked out of him...I had heard such good things about Calloway's...but the staff lies even more than Baxter!" Captain Mallory's face contoured into an expression of pure wrath when she heard that.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Jamal calmly said as he approached the heated situation. The red faced Mrs Pallans glared over to the tall young man, who didn't even flinch. He had seen the Colonel much angrier than that in the past, so this was nothing to him. "Pardon my interjection, but might I ask what makes you believe so intently that Baxter is a liar and, by extension, our superior officers are as well?" She took a few heaving breaths while still glaring at him, but his relaxed demeanor seemed to calm her down just a little bit.

"Well...for starters, had you seen the drivel he tried to tell us about in his first few letters back home!?" She asked, her focus on Jamal. "A school for monsters right next door!? I ask you…"

"But that's the truth, Ma'am. Grimwood's school-"

"Don't you start that rubbish with me, you little liar!" She snapped. Jamal's father stepped up beside his son, his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. His presence was enough to make her back down a little, but worked her up even more.

"Well, to be fair-" Mrs Roper started as she stood up from behind the sandbags. "-the idea of a school of monsters is a little farfetched."

"Exactly!" Mrs Pallas agreed with a sharp nod. "At least someone here is speaking sense."

"Mom!" Tug objected loudly.

"Sorry, honey, but I've never actually seen the girls you mentioned when we visited before," She replied apologetically. This was quite true, as the Colonel made darn sure to keep the parents in the dark about Grimwood's and the students within. A move that was biting him in the keister now. Baxter's mother gave him a rather smug smile, as if she had won this battle. This really got the Colonel's blood boiling, his face turning red and steam billowing from his ears. He turned to his second in command, who flinched in discomfort.

"Apologies, Colonel...but I don't believe in monsters either," She told him, knowing he wouldn't like that, but unable to outright lie to him. A second or two later, his hat was blasted skyward through the sheer force of his rage.

"Whoa...the Colonel's literally blown his top," Mel commented in his usual monotone. Jamal pulled out a notebook as he watched the hair fly skyward.

"Hmmm. Twelve feet. A new record."

"Does that happen often?" His father asked as the hat started to descend back onto the headmaster's head, eyebrows raised.

"Thankfully, no."

"So...you all believe that my students and I were not being truthful about the Grimwood students?" The Colonel asked in a calm tone, but with a searing glare that made his cadets quake with fear.

"Now now, Colonel. We're not saying that," Grunt's Granny said in a soothing voice, trying to de-escalate the situation.

"I am," Mrs Pallas cut in sharply.

"You shut your gob. It's only causing more trouble," The old lady informed Baxter's mother, with absolutely zero cares given to the leer she was getting for it.

"...ATTENTION!" Colonel Calloway roared. Each and every student snapped into attention; even Whatever (sequestered in the barracks with her own folks) jumped to her feet, standing up straight and rigid. Most of the parents even reacted instinctively to his rage filled order, particularly Mrs Pallas (though they all relaxed when they remembered they weren't students there). "Cadets! Captain Mallory! We're going on a field trip!"

"What?" Tug inquired in shock.

"Is he saying…?" Miguel asked, daring to hope.

"What is he saying?" Orville asked, looking to the original six cadets for answers.

"We're going to Grimwood's!" The Colonel announced angrily. "Line up at the bus in ten minutes! Tracey, inform Cadet Elle!"

"Yes sir!" Tracey responded with a salute, running off to the barracks. Most of the parents looked very surprised by this, with Baxter's Mother rolling her eyes as the Colonel stormed off.

"When I came here to visit my daughter…" Diane's mother commented, completely clueless about what was occuring. "...I did not expect this to happen."

"I don't think anyone did," Mrs Roper agreed as Tug ran off to get ready to go. "This should be interesting."

"I can't believe we're going back to Grimwood's!" The young man with blonde hair said to his friends as soon as they caught up.

"What luck, eh?" Miguel asked with a grin.

'This is going to be an absolute disaster…' Baxter thought dismally as he followed his friends, hurrying since the Colonel had ordered it.

* * *

Back at Grimwood's school, Miss Grimwood was grading a few papers in her office before the next class in the schedule; literature. It wasn't going to be a hard class, as it was going to be a free reading class (something she did once a month, to encourage her students to start on new books). She probably could have graded the papers then, but she had a book of her own she wanted to start reading, so she wanted to make sure all responsibilities were taken care of before then. She had just finished grading the final assignment when her phone rang. "Grimwood's Finishing School, Miss Grimwood speaking." She said as she answered the phone.

"Miss Grimwood, it's Colonel Calloway."

"Oh, Colonel. How lovely it is to hear from you. How are things in New Calloway?" Abigail asked, a bright smile coming to her face.

"Well enough until today. We're going to be dropping by the school in roughly an hour…"

"Really? The girls and Lincoln would be positively thrilled. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

"One of the the parents of the cadets is under the impression her son is a liar…"

"Which cadet would that be?"

"Baxter." The motherly witch couldn't help but laugh at that. "That was our opinion as well...but she seems dead set on the fact he lies about everything: particularly what he told her about your school and students."

"Hmmm. I suppose I could understand that, Colonel. Not everyone believes in monsters, witches, ghosts and whatnot."

"Granted...but when Captain Mallory and I stood up for Baxter, she had the nerve to call us liars too!" Abigail had to hold the phone away from her ear, as the volume of the Colonel's voice was hurting her ears. "...ahem, sorry, Miss Grimwood. The level of disrespect shown to the Captain and myself has me hot under the collar."

"No need for apologies. I wouldn't stand for that either."

"So, we'll be on our way shortly. Hopefully, she'll believe her eyes more than her ears."

"Well, it would still be delightful to see you all again, and to meet your new cadets, regardless of the circumstances. We'll be eagerly awaiting you all."

"Right. We'll see you then, Miss Grimwood. Good day." There was a firm click from the earpiece, indicating the headmaster had hung up. Miss Grimwood's smile remained as she hung up the phone and started to make herself a plan.

* * *

In less than ten minutes, the New Calloway Cadets lined themselves up at the motor depot, where the Colonel was doing a student/parent head count and Captain Mallory was preparing the bus for transport. There was enough room on the bus for all of them, though only barely. Someone would need to remain standing through the whole trip; a sacrifice the uptight head of the school was willing to make it make Mrs Pallas eat her words. Once everything was in order, they filed into the bus, with the students sitting toward the back and the parents mostly up front. Whatever, of course, sat in the very back, in the darkest corner to keep out of sight. Shortly after the vehicle off the facility and onto the road, the chatter started. "So, do you really think there is a school of monsters?" Jamal's father asked in a whisper to the other parents around him. Mrs Pallas was out of the loop, sitting toward the front looking like spoiled, sulking child, giving the Colonel the stink eye: a look he returned without hesitation.

"Well, Tug has said similar things in his letters…" Mrs Roper said, a thoughtful expression on her face. "But I always pegged it as an overactive imagination, since I never saw the girls he mentioned."

"Well, monsters or no, I do hope they're friendly." Mel's mother commented as she watched the scenery rush by outside the bus window.

"Oh, I'm sure they are," Miguel's father (a middle aged Hispanic man with brown hair split down the middle with a few hints of gray among them, who wore glasses, a beige bomber jacket, jeans and boots) interjected. "Apart from being weird, my son never had anything negative to say about them."

"The same goes for my little Georgie," The not so little old lady added.

"Well, if nothing else, that's promising," Diane's father said with a soft, confident smile. Despite he and his wife looking about as stereotypical as snobs could look, they were actually quite friendly and outgoing, chatting it up with the other parents as if they had been friends for years. Toward the back of the bus, Tug was quietly telling all of their new friends about the Grimwood Girls and Lincoln (he had told them some stories before, but some them beared repeating). The others were hanging on his every word; even some of Brandon's clique (the alpha male included) were listening in from their own position on the vehicle.

"So, it's all true?" Tracey asked, leaning over the back of Tug and Grunt's seat so she could join the conversation. "A school that includes a vampire, werewolf, ghost, an alien, etc?" Much like the parents, she had thought the Old Calloway Cadets were just telling stories. However, seeing how the Colonel was reacting right now gave her second thoughts.

"It sure is," Grunt confirmed."They're all cool...well, the little alien is kind of standoffish, but otherwise."

"And we haven't met the new students yet." Mel said in a monotone.

"So...the girls? Are...they cute?" Orville asked, his cheeks turning bright red, which got a giggle from Fanny.

"And that vampire girl...Sibella, was it? She as hot as you say she is?" Levi intervened with a smirk, leaning across the aisle to butt in. This brought a blush and a scowl to Tug's face as he glared over at the young man who put way too much attention into his hair.

"To answer your question, Orville...yeah, they are," Jamal answered calmly, with a hint of red to his cheeks. "I mean, even the ones who aren't human are rather cute."

"As for you, Levi, mind your own business," Tug nearly snapped at him.

"Hey, if we're going to be meeting these girls, I want to be ready, blondie. And if this Sibella is a hottie…"

"Save your ego, buster," The young squad leader from Old Calloway interrupted him. "Sibella is already dating Lincoln."

"Who says she won't trade up, eh?"

"Who says you won't end up a newt if you said that in front of them?" Grunt retorted, getting snickers from his own friends. Levi snorted at him in contempt before returning to his own seat.

"So, you think Sibella is hot, do you?" Tracey whispered into Tug's ear in a teasing tone. Tug's whole face turns bright red now as he rapidly turned to face her, nearly hitting her in the face with his own face in the process.

"...yeah...I kinda do, still…" He answered under his breath begrudgingly.

"Kinda? Your cheeks are as red as little tomatoes," She informed him quietly, which made him go even more red, both from embarrassment and a little bit of anger. She laughed softly for a moment before she added. "I'm just teasing you, Tug." The young man just kind of grunted and looked away from her for a moment, which made her smile fade.

"That's kind of a sensitive topic to him," Grunt explained in a whisper that only she could hear. "Tug had it bad for her for the longest time."

"Oh…" Tracey said as she started to put the pieces together; what Grunt just told her, and about what her friend had said about Sibella dating Lincoln. "...Sorry, Tug."

"...Sigh. Don't worry about it, Tracey," He responded after a couple seconds. "You didn't know. Anway, I've moved on, and we're all really good friends still." He glared to the side as Levi, who was speaking quietly to Brandon. "...but hearing jerks like him talk about her like that still gets me triggered…"

"Yeah. Don't blame you there." While this conversation was going on, Baxter was sitting slumped in his seat, looking like he was about to face the music. Fanny turned to look at him after she noticed he hadn't said a word the whole conversation. Granted Mort hadn't either, but he rarely spoke anyway.

"Hey, are you alright there, little buddy?"

"...this is a big mistake," He said quietly, looking down at the floor of the bus.

"Come again?"

"Throwing evidence at my mother won't make her back down. She'll just double down," Baxter informed her, covering his eyes with his hands. "And now our friends from Grimwood are going to suffer…"

"She can't be that stubborn, can she?"

"Would someone who wasn't that stubborn call both the Colonel and Captain a liar?"

"I'd say that's more lack of survival instincts, but I think I see your point," Fanny said quietly, stifling a chuckle. Baxter didn't seem to find the humor in it. "Sorry, Baxter...but hey, if it really is true, then maybe she'll really believe it." The smallest of the cadets slowly looked toward his sour faced mother, then back at the tough girl beside him, slowly shaking his head.

* * *

Ahead, at Grimwood's school, the mystical headmistress was ushering her students out onto the ground, each of them with books in their hands. She had the brilliant idea to have the free reading class outside that day: it was a nice day (by Grimwood standards) and it would be easy to surprise the students with the Calloway Cadets' arrival. She watched them from a rocking chair on the porch while the students spread out to find comfortable places to read. Lincoln, Sibella, Mark, Lucy, Tanis and Ignatius had claimed the space under the willow tree, with Wendalyn up in the tree. Ava was over by the moat, curled up on a large, flat rock, while Gila was leaning against the shoreline, half of her in the water. Phantasma was just floating in midair on her back, as if she were laying on an invisible hammock, Elsa and Milly weren't far from Miss Grimwood on the porch, and Winnie, Suki and Silas sitting against the wall around the grounds. Everyone was quietly reading the books they had selected, enjoying the overcast day and every so often chatting to their neighbor about what they were reading. About half way through the class, the sound of a vehicle engine and tires rolling along the highway caught their attention. It was very infrequently that a car of any description came down that road. Miss Grimwood smirked slightly as Wendalyn stood up as high as she could on the tree top for a look. "It's a bus," She announced to her curious classmates, squinting her eyes as she tried to get a better look at it. "...it says...New Calloway on the side."

"New Calloway!?" Most of the original Grimwood Girls and the middle son asked in surprise, rising to their feet, surprising most of the new students.

"Do you think they're coming for a visit?" Tanis asked, looking quite excited. It had been a long time since they had seen their friends in person. The new students looked all kinds of confused, looking to one another as Gila, Winnie, Suki, Elsa and Phanty ran over to where Lincoln, Tanis, and Sibella were. Milly stayed where she was, not caring much for the cadets, while Lucy also joined her brother and his friends.

"That would be nice...but they're probably just passing through." Lincoln said. Not long after he said that, the bus started to pull to a stop outside the gate. "...but I've been wrong before." The magical head of the school smiled as she rose from her chair and started to walk down the path to the gate.

"Cadets!" Colonel Calloway said sharply on the bus, most of the cadets sitting up straight in their seats. "While we may be paying Grimwood's a visit and we would all like it to be a pleasant visit, remember you are all still Calloway Cadets. Therefore, I expect you all to carry yourselves in kind."

"Yes sir!"

"Good. Just be on your best behavior and we won't have any problems," He told them, looking especially at Brandon and his crew, and then Mrs Pallas, who just huffed at him. With that understanding in place, he disembarked from the bus and approached the gate, where Miss Grimwood was waiting.

"Colonel Calloway. As ever, a pleasure to see you."

"Miss Grimwood. Nice to see you as well," He responded politely, with a light tip of his hat. "My apologies about the sudden visit."

"Oh, no need to apologize, Colonel. You and your students are always welcome at Grimwood's," The motherly witch said, waving his apology off. The Calloway headmaster motioned for the others to start getting off the bus, Captain Mallory making sure everything was in an orderly manner. Once all the students and parents emerged from the bus, another headcount took place, and Whatever was escorted off the bus (as she had tried to remain there hoping they wouldn't notice her), Abigail opened the gate onto the school grounds. The grownups present and Mallory's cadets were all hesitant to pass through the gate (especially after someone pointed out the gargoyles were literally watching them), but the Colonel and the original six cadets strolled right in without fear. The moment the boys from Old Calloway and the Grimwood Girls made eye contact, the two groups ran right to each other, exchanging hugs and handshakes with one another.

"...Are you all seeing what I'm seeing?" Tug's Mother asked as she leaned over for a look into the grounds.

"I'm seeing it...but I can scarcely believe it…" Captain Mallory commented, her mouth hanging open slightly.

"Well, there is one thing I can plainly see…" Tracey said, a smile coming to her face. "...they're friendly for certain. Come on, team." She motioned for Orville, Mort, Fanny and Melinda to follow her as she crossed over onto the Grimwood grounds.

"Little lady has the right idea," Grunt's Grandmother said with a grin. "Last one in's a scaredy cat!" She warned with a soft chortle as she slowly strode through.

'Hmph. Well, no one should say that those nerds and an old lady are braver than me…' Brandon thought sourly before he put on his best cocky face. "Come on, you guys. Even if they try anything, I'll protect you." He told his own circle of friends, putting an arm around Diane before leading them past the gate. Just as the last of the parents had worked up the nerve to follow their children, Vincent Van Ghoul had emerged from the old house.

"Was that the mail truck?" He inquired hopefully. He was expecting a delivery of new components for the alchemy and chemistry classes. What he saw instead was a crowd of people all standing in front of the gate. "Oh, I see we have company."

"Ah. Vincent. So good of you to join us," Miss Grimwood said with a smile, motioning him over. "Allow me to introduce you to Colonel Calloway. Colonel, Vincent Van Ghoul, a good friend of mine and fellow teacher here at Grimwood's."

"I have heard much about you, Colonel. It is a thrill to meet you in person." The seasoned warlock said, firmly shaking the middle aged Colonel's hand.

"Likewise, Mr Van Ghoul." Colonel Calloway responded rigidly, Captain Mallory stepping over beside him. "Allow me to introduce you both to my second in command, Captain Mallory."

"Delightful to make your aquaintance, Captain," Abigail responded warmly.

"Charmed," Vincent said, taking her hand gently and kissing the back of it like the gentleman he was. The usually stoic woman found herself somewhat flustered by this act, but managed to maintain her composure with only a soft blush on her cheeks.

"A pleasure to meet you both as well," She finally said after a few seconds.

"It's so good to see you boys again," Sibella said after she and Tug separated from their hug, giving Lincoln room to shake his hand.

"Yeah. I know it's only been a few months, but it feels like forever." Tanis commented as she was giving each of the Cadets hugs in turn.

"Yeah, I know how you feel," Miguel said with a smile.

"We've been wanting to come back for ages," Grunt agreed, fist bumping Winnie and high fiving Gosuki.

"I see you have some new friends here." Tug said, looking down at Lucy and Mark, then over at Ignatius, who was looking them over with slightly narrowed eyes. As no one was looking up, no one really saw the curious arachnotaur in the dead tree.

"Yeah. We've had a few new students enroll not long after the new year," The white haired boy said. "This is Mark," He started, nudging the shy skeleton a little closer. Mark simply waved to the Cadets, unable to bring himself to speak. "And here's my little sister, Lucy."

"A pleasure," The goth girl said in her usual monotone.

"The pleasure is ours," Mel responded with his own deadpan tone, shaking her hand.

"And over here is Ignatius," Sibella said, introducing the vampire teen standing by the tree. He just nodded to the boys in acknowledgement.

"Don't forget me," Wendalyn nearly exclaimed, making the boys all jump. The smiling spider girl jumped down from the tree, landing next to her friends before turning to face these newcomers. "I'm Wendalyn." The six young men kind of shrank back from her at first, but seeing her just standing there, smiling at them put them back at ease.

"And over there, we have Silas…" Elsa pointed out the minotaur teen standing by the wall, arms crossed, trying to look as unapproachable as possible. "And Avalina is over by the moat." The lamia girl in question was acting as if the cadets never arrived, burying her nose into her book while leering at them with disgust.

"Might want to give them some space." The Middle Loud whispered to the nearest Cadets. After all, he knew neither Silas nor Ava liked humans, and he had enough of a bone to pick with the lamia as it stood.

"Wow. Such a diverse group here." Tracey commented as she and the others stepped over to their friends and the students from Grimwood.

"Hmm? Who might this young lady be?" The pale blue skinned vampire inquired, taking a sort of interest in her. Tug took notice of this, making him feel uneasy...which is exactly what Ignatius wanted.

"I'm Tracey," The girl with the blonde ponytail responded in a friendly manner. She then proceeded to introduce her friends among the New Calloway cadets. Not far away, the 'cool' kids were mostly just standing there in awe, except for Whatever. None of them expected to really see real monster children there: Brandon especially thought Tug was just blowing smoke at them this whole time.

"Dude...I'm not sure whether this awesome, or terrifying…" Their toad like boy commented after several seconds of silence.

"...well, there are girls among them, and they are cuties." Levi said with a grin as he dusted off his uniform and straightened his hat. "I'm going in." He said with confidence, striding toward the group. No one else could even move, but some for different reasons: Whatever just didn't care to, Trader was deep in thought as he wondered how he could profit off of this, and Brandon because his eyes were locked on Sibella.

'Blondie was right...she's an absolute knockout…'

"Brandy…?" Diane asked, gently nudging him, a fearful quaver in her voice. When he didn't respond, she looked to him, noticing him staring, and frowned at him. "Brandon!"

"Huh!?" He snapped out of his staring, turning to his girlfriend. "What is it, babe?" She leered at him and pointed something out to him; the spider girl standing right in front of them. The jock teen quickly jumped in front of her, looking ready for a fight. Wendalyn was a little taken aback at this, but she had somewhat expected this. She just smiled and held a hand out to them.

"Hello. I'm Wendalyn," She introduced herself politely. The group of human children just stared at her, no one speaking and barely moving (though Brandon dropped his defensive stance slowly). There was a moment of awkward silence before she slowly lowered her hand. "It's...uh...nice to meet you," She said, her smile fading. More silence followed. Seeing this was going nowhere, the poor arachnotaur just awkwardly skittered away from them, returning to her friends. Just then, Levi came back to his own friends, looking like his pride had been badly wounded.

"What happened to you?" Trader asked.

"...you see that kid there?" The boy with well maintained hair asked, pointing back to Lincoln, who was trying to console the saddened spider/girl hybrid. "Not only did the vampire hottie turn me down for...that little nerd...but he has TWO other girlfriends too!"

"WHAT!?" Brandon, DIane, Trader and Elsworth all exclaimed. Even Whatever looked surprised.

"And, apparently...they're cool with that…"

"Ridiculous...what does mini grandpa have that you don't?" Brandon asked indignantly. Levi winced and used his hat to cover his face.

"Don't. Ask." He growled.

Silas continued to quietly watch everything occur from afar, still looking as unapproachable as possible. His focus on his friends was so much that he never noticed the not so little old lady slowly moved her way over to the minotaur. "Goodness...you're a big one, aren't you?" He blinked, then looked down at Grunt's Grandmother. He scowled at her, but didn't say anything. He didn't like humans, sure, but he was taught to respect his elders as well, so he wasn't about to force her away. Figuring she would leave if he just responded, he gave her a curt nod. "What's your name, young man?"

"Silas McRowds…"

"Oh. From Scotland, are you? I have some friends from there. From up in the Highlands, not far from Wick. Lovely country from what I've heard."

"...aye. The Highlands can be especially lovely over the summer," The minotaur lad commented, his scowl fading a bit as he reminisced about his home.

"So, what are you doing over here, Silas? Why aren't you with your friends?"

"I'm fine over here, Ma'am…"

"Oh, come on. Don't be a spoil sport." The silver haired old woman gently took hold of his arm with one hand. He just rolled his eyes, thinking there was no way an elderly human of her size could move one such as himself. Was he ever surprised when one firm tug from her sent him stumbling after her. Once he recovered and took a few steps after her, he planted his hooves into the ground, which was just enough to stop her.

"By the many heads of Typhon...how can one of your age have such strength?...er, no disrespect intended."

"Hmm?" The old lady turned to look up at him. "Oh, none taken, dearie. As for your question, I take good care of myself. Exercise every morning and evening, the right food, the works. On a good day, I could move a small car if the emergency brake isn't set."

"That is mighty impressive, fer a human," he told her with a nod of his head.

"Thank you, though I suppose for a muscle bound young man like you, that's just a warm up." Silas chuckled a bit, as that was true enough: if he really wanted to, he could move a small car as a warm up. Perhaps he should try it sometime soon. "My grandson, Georgie, is a mighty tough customer himself."

"That a fact? Which one is he?" She pointed out Grunt among the Cadets, who were laughing about Levi's rejection. He raised an eyebrow as he saw the overweight boy, ready to doubt her word. However, he remembered that this elderly woman had enough strength to get him to move (though he wasn't really trying to resist at the time). If that was the case, just how strong could HE be? Silas couldn't deny he was curious now.

Meanwhile, over by the teachers and headmasters of Grimwood's and Calloway's, the parents of the cadets were all congregated, watching their children as they interacted with these most unusual children. They were nervous at first, of course, but seeing how well most of them seemed to be getting on and talking it over with Miss Grimwood and Mr Van Ghoul put them more at ease. Even the Colonel was calming down some, almost forgetting about the very reason they had come there. He turned his attention to Mrs Pallas with a bit of a smirk, expecting to see a look of stunned disbelief. Baxter was also looking at his mother, but with an expression of fear. Sadly, his concerns were justified, as the difficult woman simply looked indignant and offended. "This is a load of horsefeathers!" She suddenly snapped, loud enough to get everyone's attention. Tanis and Mark both looked skyward, thinking she meant that literally, and a pegasus was flying overhead or something.

"What's with you?" Mrs Roper asked in exasperation.

"Don't you all see this isn't real? It's all a set up. An act," Baxter's mother said, spreading her arms to indicate everything she thought was fake. "The Colonel no doubt called the school ahead to set all this up."

"I won't deny Colonel Calloway did call me ahead of time," Miss Grimwood confessed, which made the wide hipped woman grin in smug satisfaction. "As a gentleman should before arriving at someone else's home."

"I dunno, ma'am " Fanny's father commented, stroking his powerful chin. "Looks mighty real to me."

"Don't be a fool!" She told him sharply (earning his anger in the process) before she stormed over to the Grimwood student. Seeing this as a hostile action, Lincoln moved in front of Tanis and Mark, ready to protect them. "I mean look at them! These are the worst costumes I've ever seen!"

"Costumes?" Elsa looked at her friends in surprise.

"Like you," she pointed a finger right at the reanimated teen. "That's grease paint if ever I saw it, and those bolts were glued on so poorly." The young Frankenteen just stared at her as if she had three heads as the woman turned to Sibella next. "And that hair...clearly a wig!" She continued, making a grab for her hair. Sibella sprang back away from her, Ignatius rushing over beside her and the both of them baring their fangs at her.

"Now see here-" Abigail started to say warningly.

"-and those fangs...I've seen better false teeth in a joke shop!" Her scornful gaze then turned to the youngest of the girls, making the one son tense up. She paused for a moment before speaking again "...ok, it's not convincing, but that is an adorable costume," she admitted before moving on, leaving the little mummy and Baxter to breathe sighs of relief. Her honorary big brother, however, wasn't ready to relax yet.

"Hey, Lady! What's your-" Winnie started to ask in outrage, stomping over to Mrs Pallas. Unfortunately, this only made the young lycan a target. The woman grabbed her by the sides of her face and pulled hard on her fur.

"This is just a mask, and a very poor one at that!" She yelled as she tried to yank the 'mask' off.

"Ow! Hey, let go! Ouch!" The werewolf girl whined and wailed in pain as she tried to get away from Baxter's mother.

"Mom, stop!" The little boy cried out, but it was too late. Almost everyone acted at once; Lincoln was forming spheres of wind in his hands, while Sibella conjured a pair of magic missiles. Silas immediately saw red and charged at her, with Grunt's Grandmother right behind him. Colonel Calloway and his cadets all made moves to remove her from Winnie, while Milly was drawing her ray gun from her suit while still on the porch. However, Miss Grimwood beat them all to her, teleporting right between the two and forced her back with a wave of magic, sending Mrs Pallas flying right into the Colonel's and Captain's arms. Her hair and shawl was flowing from the pure magical energy emitting from her, and she had a look of absolute fury on her face; a look that scared almost everyone present, Lucy included.

"Don't. Ever. Touch. One of my students. EVER AGAIN," She warned her in a calm, but angry voice. Once the shock wore off, Winnie's friends ran to her side to check on her.

"Ye alright, lass?" The minotaur asked, still fuming.

"Yeah...just kind of sore," Winnie responded, rubbing her face.

"Why did you push me!?" The impossible woman yelled, wrenching her arms free from the Calloway teachers. "I was just trying to remove her mask!"

"Listen, ma'am…" The magical headmistress took a few steps forward, grass getting ripped from the ground as she walked. "...Winnie isn't wearing a mask. None of my students are, nor are they in costumes."

"Don't you lie to me!" She screamed right into Abigail's face, who didn't even flinch. "They have to be! There's no such thing as monsters!" She continued to rage, waving her fists in the air before pushing past Miss Grimwood. Despite her stubbornness, she wasn't fool enough to make the same mistake twice, so she kept a safe distance from the students, pointing furiously at Mark. "HE is wearing a mask!"

"...I'm wearing a wig, but not a mask," The skeletal boy informed her meekly, not that she was listening.

"...and I can see the wires holding her up!" Mrs Pallas continued to yell, indicating Phantasma. The ghostly girl just frowned, waving her arm above her to prove there were no strings, but the disbelieving woman simply moved on. "And him-" She reached Silas, who was glaring daggers at her, snorting when she stopped in front of him. She paused for half a second before turning very quickly to Wendy. "And I don't know how she's managing THIS...it's a good trick, I'll admit...but it's still not real!"

"Madam, I assure you there are no tricks involved here." Abigail tried to tell her.

"Nonsense! It's all special effects and costumes, and (for the most part) very poor costumes at that! Especially yours!" She pointed directly at the angered head mistress. "Yours is easily the worst witch outfit I ever saw! The goth girl is a more convincing witch, and she isn't even trying!" While she was displeased to hear this woman bashing on Miss Grimwood like that, Lucy couldn't help but feel a certain amount of pride hearing her say she looked like a witch without trying.

"Madam! If you would simply shut your mouth, or at very least, cease yelling long enough to listen!" The mystical head of Grimwood's snapped, her own voice raising. It was very rare she raised her voice, so it made all of her students rather afraid of what was going to happen. Even Colonel Calloway looked quite pale. However, it seemed to have no effect on Baxter's mother, who neither shut her mouth nor stopped shouting.

"Oh, this is bad...really bad…" Baxter groaned, shaking his head. "Now that she's built up a head of steam, it's going to be impossible to stop her…"

"Why is she going on like this, Baxter?" Lincoln asked, turning to the little boy.

"My mother is under the belief that everything she doesn't personally believe is true is a lie. It doesn't matter what it is or who says it, except herself. It doesn't matter how much evidence you throw at her. It doesn't matter how good your logic is. Unless she believes it, it's not true."

"Truly an interesting woman…" Mr Van Ghoul commented flatly as he watched the shouting match between Miss Grimwood and Mrs Pallas (something he never thought he would witness in his extended life).

"...Wait," Lucy said quietly, her head facing the argument, but her eyes darting toward Baxter. "What was that you said? About how it didn't matter who said it apart from her?"

"Well, yeah...like I said, she won't believe anything contrary to what she thinks is true."

"So if we can get her to say it's true, she'll believe it?"

"It's never happened...but I suppose." Lucy smirked lightly.

"Lincoln, Professor Van Ghoul...if you're willing to help, I have an idea." She told them, motioning them over to quickly whisper her plan to him. By the end of it, Lincoln was grinning and Vincent gave Lucy an approving nod. Meanwhile, the high volumed debate between the head mistress and the stubborn woman was showing no sign of slowing down. Miss Grimwood had since given up trying to reason with her, but she was too upset to back down. She was one step away from just banishing Baxter's mother from the grounds when Lucy stepped up beside Mrs Pallas.

"Excuse me," The goth girl said, at a much higher voice than she usually would, getting the attention of the two older women.

"Just a moment, Lucy," Miss Grimwood said, not wishing to get her involved in this.

"What do you want!?" The woman with curly black hair snapped as she turned her gaze onto the little girl, still in very foul temper.

"Ma'am, please stop screaming. It's entirely unnecessary," The eight year old Loud requested in her monotone. "Also, I find it incredible that, with real monsters and magic right in front of your face, that you actively choose to ignore them."

"Young lady...there is NO such thing as monsters or magic! It is a LIE!" Baxter's mother yelled, leaning over to look Lucy in where she believed her eyes were.

"You're wrong." Mrs Pallas was utterly stunned at the boldness of this little girl, as her son gasped in horror (not having heard Lucy's plan).

"You little brat!" She screamed, raising a hand to smack the little goth. The nearby Grimwood students all look ready to intervene, as did Miss Grimwood. However, Lucy raised her hand to stop them, not a trace of fear in her face. Not only that, but Lincoln seemed unconcerned too. The stubborn woman swung her open palm at her...and her hand passed right through her face. Baxter blinked, as did his mother. Her friends also seemed a little confused for a moment, but they pretty quickly caught on when the thick hipped woman tried to smack her again, once more hitting air. After the third time, it started to become comical as she kept on trying again and again and again. The students from both schools were starting to snicker and giggle, with even Baxter having a hard time holding back his mirth.

"I wonder how long she plans to keep that up," Tug's mother wondered aloud, quite amused by this.

"Probably until she can't lift her arm anymore," Jamal answered, as the bewildered woman started wildly flailing her arm as if she were trying to swat a fly. It was at this time a second Lucy had appeared, stepping over beside the first one. Mrs Pallas doesn't notice at first, but after a few seconds, she spotted the second little goth standing beside the illusion in front of her. She screamed and backed away, looking at the two of them.

"W...what!? What is this?!" She asked, pointing at both of them.

"What is what?" Both Lucy's inquired innocently.

"I'm...I'm seeing two of you."

"Gee, ma'am...is there something wrong with your eyes?" Her brother asked with a faux look of concern.

"What? Nonsense. I have perfect eyesight with my glasses." Baxter's mother objected with a frown.

"Really? Perhaps it's in your head then. Is there any history of hallucinations in your family?" The witch in training asked.

"Certainly not!" She seemed more offended now. "I have a clean bill of health, physically and mentally!"

"Not your eyes, not your mind...perhaps you had a little something to drink before-" Mr Van Ghoul started to suggest with a smirk.

"How dare you!?" She cut him off, about to fly into a rage once more. "I do not drink, outside of a little port or champagne over special occasions!"

"So, you're saying there's nothing wrong with your eyes, your mental health is fine and you aren't impaired in any way, shape or form, yes?" Lucy asked.

"That's what I just said!" She confirmed angrily, glaring at her.

"Well, in that case, the only, unassailable conclusion to this is…?" With a wave of her hand, her illusory double vanished from sight. Mrs Pallas did a double take after she witnessed this, then just kind of stood there, a slack jawed expression on her face.

"M...Mom?" The youngest of the Calloway Cadets slowly approached his mother. She didn't respond to him, nor him waving his hand in front of her face.

"Is...she going to be alright?" Tanis asked, starting to become concerned.

"I suspect she is in shock." Jamal commented, moving over for a closer look. While they were trying to figure this out, her mind was racing.

'I...I saw two of her. One of her disappeared…' She thought to herself as she tried to process what she just witnessed with her own eyes. 'I wasn't hallucinating...I said so myself, and if I said it...but, how can it be? Magic isn't real...but what was that then? A hologram? No, that's stupid...that kind of technology only exists in movies. But...if that was magic and magic was real, then...that means I was...wrong?' Her legs started to shake to the point she nearly fell to the ground. However, a quick snap of the fingers from Vincent conjured a large cushion for her to sit on. "...but I'm never wrong," She finally said softly, starting to verbalize her thoughts now. "Everyone has always told me so...my parents, my friends, my teachers, my family...but, if magic is real, then I was wrong. If I was wrong about that, was I wrong about monsters not being real?" She glanced toward the Grimwood students, most of whom were starting to get worried, while about half were on guard.

"...and if I was wrong about that, what else was I wrong about?" Her tone started to get more frantic the further she travelled down this path of logic. "Was I wrong about the Colonel and Captain? Could I have been mistaken about Baxter? Was he telling the truth the whole time?" At this point, she was raving, breaking out in a cold sweat. "Was I wrong to send him to Calloway's!? IS MY SON EVEN A BOY!?" Smack! All went silent for a moment as Mrs Pallas just sat there stunned, touching her face where Grunt's Granny had just slapped her. "Thanks...I think. I needed that."

'So did I,' She thought, before she said in her sweetest voice, "Think nothing of it, dear."

"Are you alright, Mom?" The young man asked, taking hold of his mother's hand.

"I...I think so, Baxter…" She answered, though she still looked kind of fidgety. "I just...I don't know what to think…I've always been told I was right before. Always; but I just proved myself wrong."

"No doubt it hit you quite hard." Vincent commented in a neutral tone, but a small smile.

"Yes...Not just that I was wrong, but the thought of what else I could have been incorrect about. How many times have I thought I was right when I wasn't? Have I always been wrong about everything!?"

"Oh no," Milly said as she strode over to her, a look of annoyance on her face as she snapped her fingers in front of Baxter's mother's face. She snapped out of her ranting before she could get started. "We are not going down that worm hole again. Now, look at me, Earthling." She pointed at her eyestalks to emphasize what she wanted her to do. "Listen to me. Of course you are wrong. You are an Earthling; human to be specific," She started to say, getting angry looks from the human cadets. The parents were a little too stunned to see a real alien to be offended. "As a result, you are prone to human error. It's only natural. Even non-humans are subject to such error, including the earth monsters...and myself," She cringed a little to admit that, but carried on. "Have you been mistaken from the beginning, I cannot say. I've only been on this planet for a round an Earth year. However, the point is, all beings make mistakes. How does the quaint Earth saying go? To err is human?"

"Milly's right, if a tad blunt," Lincoln interjected, stepping forward. "We all goof up every once in a while."

"Though most goof ups don't involve trying to tear my face off…" Winnie growled under her breath. "My face is still sore…"

"And no, Mom. You weren't wrong about everything," Her son informed her, sitting on his knees beside her. "I admit I wasn't perfectly honest every moment before I got sent to Calloway's…"

"Maybe not...but it was all the important things I was wrong about, wasn't I?" She asked, looking sadly at him. "Believing you were a liar all the time...and sending you to military school as a result…"

"Well, yes," The half pint cadet confessed. "But it turned out alright. I like it at Calloway's. Yes, it was kind of rough at first, but I made a lot of great friends: from our old school, from Grimwood's and from the new school as well."

"But you didn't deserve it…" She said in a morose voice before she rose to her feet, then slowly turned to Miss Grimwood. "...Miss Grimwood, Colonel, Captain, I am so sorry about everything that transpired…"

"I accept your apology, ma'am," Abigail said curtly, her arms crossed, while Colonel Calloway just grunted angrily. Captain Mallory, however, did not respond at all.

"...and children...I deeply apologize for my actions...especially to you, Miss Werewolf…" Baxter's mother continued, turning to the students.

"Ask me when my face isn't hurting and maybe I'll accept that apology…" The lycan girl grumbled, and a few of her friends and some of the Calloway Cadets seemed to share her sentiment of being less forgiving. With that, the curly raven haired woman started to walk toward the front gate.

"Mom? Where are you going?"

"Back to the bus, dear…" She replied in a flat tone that was difficult to decipher.

"What? But-"

"I just need some time to sit down, sweetie...besides, I have some thinking to do…" She cut him off, making it clear she wasn't going to be dissuaded of this. So off she went toward the Calloway bus, with Baxter watching her leave the grounds with a sad expression.

"...do you think they'll be alright?" Lincoln whispered to Sibella, feeling great sympathy for both Baxter and his mother.

"Perhaps in time," His vampiric girlfriend answered under her breath. "She does seem regretful of her actions. What she does next is up to her. As for Baxter, I think he'll be just fine," She informed him, watching as Tug, Mel and Orville went over to comfort their friend.

"I hope so." The one son said, before he turned to his little sister. "Well played, Lucy."

"Thanks, Lincoln. I have to admit, I was a little worried that she would have had another excuse toward the end of it." The gothic girl admitted quietly. "But thankfully, it worked."

"It was a brilliant bit of strategy." Elsa told her with a smile, patting the young girl on the shoulder. "Where'd you get the inspiration for that?"

"I've had to use a similar tactic on Lynn a few times." The raven haired witch to be explained, looking up at the reanimated teen. "She is the most stubborn of all of us, albeit not as stubborn as she was. Regardless, sometimes, to get her to realize she was wrong, we just need to get her to admit it herself."

"The illusion/invisibility combo was a nice touch to the plan." The daughter of Dracula interjected, smiling to her.

"Heh. Well, I could only hand the illusion part myself, so I needed Professor Van Ghoul's help with the invisibility. We hadn't covered that in class yet."

"Doesn't make it any less clever," The vampiress said to her.

"Hey...you going to be alright, buddy?" Tug asked quietly, kneeling down beside his little friend.

"...I guess so," Baxter responded, though he didn't sound it. "But I'm not sure about my mother. I've never seen her like this…"

"She'll be fine, Baxter," Mel told him in his monotone. "She just needs a little time to herself, to think this all over."

"I suppose…" The young man said, his eyes directed to where the bus was parked. Mrs Pallas had already boarded the vehicle, returning to the seat where she had arrived in. The moment she sat down, she started to mull everything over in her mind. To say she felt awful was an understatement; not only had she made a fool of herself and embarrassed her son as well, but she treated practically everyone, her own child included, very poorly. All because she was under the mistaken impression everything they said were lies.

'I need to make it up to them...my son especially...but how?' She wondered, looking at her reflection in the window. 'Taking him out of Calloway's? No, he said he liked it there, despite not deserving to be put there...I can't just get him toys or games...he couldn't use them until he got home, and who knows when that will happen...what to do, what to do?' She pondered, silently sitting by her lonesome as she tried to brainstorm how she could make everything right.

* * *

The rest of the visit went fairly smoothly, save for Brandon and most of his crew being hesitant to approach the Grimwood students and Trader trying to sell some useless stuff to Wendy (only to find she had no money). It lasted a bit longer than any of the teachers had planned, causing the class to miss Monster History. However, Miss Grimwood felt it was well worth it. However, the Cadets couldn't stay all day, as the Colonel had things planned back at New Calloway, so the children eventually all needed to say goodbye. And as one would expect, once their guests had left, it was business as usual at Grimwood's; that is, until after lights out. After the students had all gone to bed, a dark shape could be found slinking through the darkened halls. Their destination: the common room. Naturally, the room was devoid of students, though Matches was curled up on one of the easy chairs. The one right in front of the tv crystal.

The night wanderer gently nudged the little dragon, waking him up and (of course) making him cranky. He turned red as he glared at the one who dared annoy him, only to blink in surprise. In the red glow from his own body, he saw his owner looking back at him. She simply put a finger to her lips and gave the little dragon a soft wink before she picked him up in one hand and took his seat, but let him lay on her lap instead. Matches seemed fine with this as he simply closed his eyes and went back to sleep. She summoned the remote right to her hand and turned the cable box on, which turned on the crystal. After a moment's search, she seemed to find what she was looking for; a show called 'Maldavia's Coven' on the soaps channel. "Wonderful. It just started." She said softly as she stroked her scaly pet, getting her comfortable as she prepared to enjoy the show.


	12. Chapter 12: M-149's Stand

_AN: As promised (kinda), a story starring Milly, aka M-149. Special thanks to Alexpv22 for certain elements of this story, I'll expand on that more at the end to avoid spoilers._

_Yep, I'm still around and posting stories. They're just long chapters, except for Gregory Loud Horror Story (which is delayed partially because of writer's block)...plus I got Animal Crossing New Horizons, so that's taking up a small chunk of my time too._

_Anyway, before we get into the story, a quick answering of a few questions:_

_Ironchef: No, I haven't really seen "The Casagrandes" as it's own show, but I have seen the episodes that were shown during "The Loud House". And I probably won't be doing a Casagrandes story anytime soon. The characters will probably appear in this story and in a few of my other stories._

_I am still working on a chapter for Zanya. Just having trouble scaling the wall I hit. I will try and focus on that chapter for next time._

* * *

M-149's Stand

On most days, Milly could be found either down in the science lab, in her own room, or hanging out with the other younger students as part of the study group. However, today, she could be found on the roof of the school, an rc remote in her hand and a smile on her face. Up in the air over the school was her aerial drone; the one she built with her own two hands. She had designed it to be built similar to a martian scout transport: somewhat shaped like a boomerang, supported by four propellers. It was bronze in color, with black and red markings along the wings. She was really giving it the pressure test up there. Sharp turns, sudden stops, deep dives and sharp rises. She was quite proud of what she had built and how it was handling, even if it was built with 'inferior materials'. "It's incredible what martian ingenuity can accomplish with what's at hand," She said to herself as she brought the drone back to her and put it back in its case. "But enough practice. It's time for the real deal." She had a confident grin on her face as she carefully levitated herself back into the school and made her way to the room Lincoln and Silas shared. A few seconds after she rapped her knuckles on the door, the one son opened it.

"Hello, Milly," He politely greeted her, wearing an orange training gi with blue pants.

"Morning, Lincoln. About to engage in martial arts practice, I see."

"Mmhmm. We'll be starting as soon as Lynn gets here. What can I do for you?" He asked as he stepped aside to allow her entry.

"I simply need to use your teleportation orb. I am meeting with Lisa to attend an aerial radio control combat competition," The little alien explained as she stepped into the room.

"Really? Well, best of luck to you," He said with a genuine smile.

"Luck will have nothing to do with it...but I appreciate it all the same," She responded with a faint smile of her own as she walked up to the orb and placed her hand upon it. In the blink of an eye, she was gone.

* * *

Over in Royal Woods, Lisa was waiting in the living room whilst looking at her watch. She was awaiting the arrival of M-149. She didn't have to wait long, for the young alien appeared about two minutes after she started waiting. "Welcome, M-149. I trust I find you well today?" The toddler genius inquired with a small smile.

"Well enough, thank you, Lisa. Are you prepared to go?"

"Indeed. But before we go, you'll need a disguise." The young genius pulled out what looked like a smartwatch from her pocket. She put the device on her wrist and made a few adjustments to it. "Fortunately, I have just the thing for you. It will create a holographic field around you, making you look like an Earth native for as long as the battery power holds."

"Interesting...and you just happened to have it?" The little martian asked as she looked it over.

"I actually invented it for myself, so I could do research at the local library without being hassled," Lisa explained and, after Milly gave her a strange look, she elaborated, "...I have a lot of overdue fines." The Earth bound alien snickered a little upon hearing that before she activated the watch, turning into a little red haired girl with fair skin, lots of freckles, and a t shirt and pants that matched her spacesuit.

"Fascinating." The martian commented as she looked herself over.

"Hey Leese, the orb open?" Lynn inquired as she descended the stairs, spotting the 'new girl' in the living room the moment she could see into the room. "Hmm? Who's the new kid?"

"Don't worry about it, Lynn." The four year old intellectual responded without missing a beat. "The teleportation orb is indeed free."

"Cool. I'm running a bit late for my spar with Linc." The sporty sister said as she dashed over to the sphere. "See ya, Leese. See ya...whoever you are."

"Good day, Lynn." Lisa replied just as her older sister vanished. "Come on, M-149. Father is waiting out in the van." The disguised young alien nodded, following the toddler out of the house and into Vanzilla.

* * *

A few hours later, the Loud family's not so faithful vehicle had returned to the driveway. Milly (still in disguise), Lisa and Lynn Sr emerged from the van, the two children actually laughing. The young martian had a large trophy in her hands, Lisa carrying the case with her drone inside. "Congratulations, Milly," Mr Loud said, smiling at her.

"Thank you, Earth father." M-149 replied, looking rather pleased with herself.

"You flew exceptionally, M-149," Lisa complimented her. "I was quite worried after your drone had lost two of its propellers."

"I was not concerned. While my opponent was an aggressive flyer, he had more confidence than skill. Still, he was a challenge, for an earthling. Made his defeat all the more satisfying. That, plus the tantrum he threw after." Milly chuckled a little as she remembered that moment.

"It was quite cathartic, I agree," The young genius confirmed with a grin of her own. The two of them entered the Loud House, finding the living room occupied by Zanya, Lola and Lana, watching cartoons. The young martian and the zombie girl shared a quick salutation and farewell as Milly and Lisa both placed their hands on the teleportation orb, vanishing in a flash of light.

_(AN: If you would all like to see the competition in a flashback, I'll write it up some time later)_

* * *

Upon their arrival, M-149 removed the disguise watch and Lisa set down the drone case when they both heard the sound of shouting from the school grounds. The two intellectuals looked at each other in surprise before they ran to the nearest window for a look outside. A very surprising (and alarming to the native of Mars) sight greeted them. There was a needle shaped spaceship, colored a greenish-bronze color. Standing at the bottom of a metal incline leading out of the ship were a quartet of extremely tall, frog headed martians in red and gold robes that made them look like they were part of the Spanish Inquisition. Not only that, but Milly's mother and father were there too. It seemed these taller aliens were the ones doing the shouting, at Miss Grimwood and Professor Van Ghoul. They seemed to be trying to defuse the situation, with most of the Grimwood students and Lynn nearby watching this go down with confused and worried expressions. "My word...what is all this about?" Lisa inquired with raised eyebrows, turning to Milly, who had gone pale.

"T...The Martian High Council…" She gasped, gulping in concern. "What are they doing here?" The second youngest Loud blinked when she said that, then watched as the martian ran out of Lincoln's room.

* * *

Down on the grounds…

"For the final time, Earthling…" The tallest of the robed martians warned in a robotic like monotone, glaring at Miss Grimwood. His face was a brilliant red to match his robes, his eyestalks somewhat wrinkled to show his age. "...bring forth M-149, or else we will tear apart this hovel you call a school to locate her."

"Head Councilor, as we have tried to explain to you, Miss M-149 is currently away from school at this point," Abigail informed him, standing firm in the face of these leering aliens in spite of her concern. "If you would just be patient, I am-"

"Enough," The Head Councilor rudely interrupted her, sweeping his arm as he said that. "We have ordered you to summon forth the punished…"

"Punished?" Lincoln muttered, looking over at seven of the original Grimwood Girls. They all looked as lost as he was. Milly never mentioned anything to that extent to any of them. Not even Tanis or Gila, her best friends.

"...and you have refused. We warned you what would transpire and now you will face the consequences." He turned to a lavender faced female councilor and nodded to her. She glanced toward the ship, her eyes glowing. From the upper side of the ship, a strange looking device that looked like a giant cannon (aside from the three metal orbs arranged in a triangular manner in place of a barrel) emerged, pointed right at the school. All the students present gasped, with some of them getting ready for action: Lincoln and Sibella started forming magical energy into their hands, Silas, Elsa, Lynn and Winnie all looked ready to charge into the fray, and Tanis was forming a lasso with her bandages (though she was uncertain what she could do against whatever that weapon was). However, before things could escalate any further, M-149 burst from the front doors and rushed over as fast as she could, sweating bullets and gasping for air as she stopped before her parents and the High Council, still holding her first place trophy. "Ah. There she is," The Head Councilor said flatly, his leer turning to the little martian. "Has living on this backward mudball for so long caused you to forget your proper respects, youngling?"

"P...Praises to you...Head Councilor...High Council of...the glorious people of Mars…" Milly gasped out as she tried to recover.

"Better." It was then her mother and father noticed the award in her hand.

"What's that you have there, 149?" Her mellow father asked, leaning in for a closer look.

"It's...an award I won in a radio controlled aerial combat competition," She explained, not even looking at them. "...I won."

"Of course you did," M Female Prime replied coldly, clearly sounding as if winning was expected of her and not an accomplishment. Lincoln, Lucy and Lynn all frowned at her; they knew her mother was quite cold from what Lisa told her, but this…

"Enough of this prattling." The Head Councilor swung his arm in front of him, the trophy being ripped from Milly's hand by an unseen force, flying across the grounds until it smashed against a rock by the moat.

"Hey! What is your problem, frog face!?" Lynn snapped, unable to restrain herself.

"Silence, Earthling. We never gave you permission to speak, least of all to superior beings such as ourselves."

"I'll say whatever the hell I like! It's a-"

"Miss Loud, please restrain yourself," Miss Grimwood said calmly, turning her eyes to the hot headed teen. "This is a far more delicate situation than it seems."

"While you are wise to caution her, Earth elder, her impudence will do no further harm or help to your planet's fate then what has already been done." The purple faced councilor informed Miss Grimwood.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Mr Van Ghoul asked with crossed arms.

"M-149," The tallest of the martians started, ignoring Vincent. "Over a year ago, it was the judgement of the High Council that you be banished to the Planet Earth…"

"Banished?" Elsa looked over at her smaller, extraterrestrial friend with surprise.

"Perhaps that would explain why M-149 is enrolled in Grimwood's School here on Earth," Lisa commented, making her brother and athletic older sister recoil in surprise.

"Where did you…?" Lynn started to ask.

"I think that is the least of all questions here, elder sister. The most of which being the crime that brought about this judgement."

"Did I say you miserable-"

"Our daughter talked back to the Head Councilor," M Male Prime answered, looking toward the four council members with distaste.

"M Male Prime! You are on thin enough ice! Silence yourself!" The martian to his left snapped, his face a yellowish green with brown spots.

"When the Head Councilor was regaling a moment in Martian history to myself and the many other younglings…" Milly explained, her eyes still on the ground. "...he stated a fact that was not historically accurate. All I did was speak to correct him."

"M-149, you know that contradicting the Head Councilor of Mars is a grievous sin. The Council's word is law, and my word, as Head Councilor, trumps all," The leader of Mars said, not sounding even the least bit upset.

"What was it that he got wrong?" Winnie asked, because if she didn't, it was going to bother her for ages.

"He claimed responsibility for the Phlonic Uprising, the brutal revolution that would give birth to the Council…"

"M-149, that's enough! That information is forbidden to Earth ears!" Her mother yelled at her.

"...However, the Uprising happened over seven hundred years ago. He would have been just a podling when the fighting occurred…" The little martian continued, her face one of anger directed against her superiors, though she couldn't bring herself to look at them,

"Youngling, your mouth has the potential to bring you and your family much trouble…" The Head Councilor warned her, his tone colder than even dry ice. "...especially after we have found it in our grace to allow you to return to Mars before your sentence has ended."

"W...what!?" Milly asked in absolute shock.

"What!?" The martian mother and head scientist asked, even more shocked, with a hint of delight in her voice. Meanwhile, her husband just frowned more, mistrust written all over his amphibious face.

"You mean...she can go back home?" Tanis interjected.

"That is what I said, Earthling. Now be silent," Lincoln's blood was starting to boil over, the more he heard these martians and their disrespect toward his friends and his family. He briefly wondered if this was what Lynn felt like when she got angry. "Yes, M-149. As a result of a decision the council has made regarding the Planet Earth, you have been permitted a pardon for your crime."

"Wait...a decision regarding the Earth?" Abigail asked with trepidation.

"Indeed. The Council has decided that the Planet Earth and its backwards inhabitants are too dangerous to the Martian people to be allowed to live. The planet, and all on it, must be destroyed," He told them in, with the aire of someone explaining a simple math problem.

"WHAT!?" Every native of Earth gasped in absolute horror, as well as Milly.

"Pardon my saying so, Head Councilor, but while I understand the human race-"

"You would do well to be silent, Earth whelp. After all, this is all your fault," He interrupted her, pointing a spindly finger right at Lisa.

"Lisa's fault? How is it Lisa's fault!?" Lincoln yelled, hardly able to contain himself any further.

"Simple. The little upstart had decided to meddle in affairs that weren't meant for your pathetic monkey brains," The Martian leader informed them all, his eyes locked on Lisa's, who was staring back with a raised eyebrow. "Time, spaces, the dimensional fabric. These things are well beyond the inferior races such as yourselves, and yet, this little whelp has not only delved into their secrets, but unlocked them as well if our information is correct."

"With all due respect, Councilor, but even if that were a reason for such actions…" Lisa said, adjusting her glasses and looking fearlessly up at the Council. "...then why not simply punish me? Why punish the planet?" Her family looked at her in surprise. Was she really willing to make this kind of sacrifice?

"A decent try, Earth Whelp, but I have made my judgement…"

"Dropping the pretense, are we?" Milly's father piped up as he fiddled around with a device that looked suspiciously like a PDA in his hands. "Not the Council's decision anymore, but yours. Isn't that always how it's been? You say jump, everyone else is already in the air."

"Male Prime!" His wife snapped, glaring angrily at him.

"No, Female Prime. This needs to be said," He responded, putting his foot down both figuratively and literally, much to M Female Prime's surprise. Gone was his more laid back attitude. Gone was the somewhat glazed look in his eyes. He looked like a completely different Martian. While she was positively furious at him right now, she couldn't deny...it kind of got her hearts racing. "The Council was formed ages back for the express purpose of preventing a single power from attaining supreme control over Martian kind. Many supreme intellects acting as one for the good of Mars. Yet, here we are, with one councilor speaking for all of Mars. Just like the Empress in olden days…" His little speech earned several death glares from the Martian High Council, but not from the Head Councilor, who simply refused to dignify his existence.

"Don't we get any say in this!?" Sibella asked in outrage.

"Earthling, do you give the ants a say when you tread upon them? Or the roaches before they exterminate them? No. You simply destroy them for the pests they are. To Martian kind, that is all you are. Pests. Mindless insects unworthy of notice until you become too numerous...then, you must die." The Head Councilor answered flatly, his eyes turning back to Milly.

"Don't we even get a chance to defend ourselves!?" Lynn shouted, Winnie and Lucy trying to hold her back.

"Earthlings, we grow tired of your outbursts…" The female member of the council said, narrowing her eyes at them. "...unless you wish to be exterminated before-"

"Hold. She is, for once in her no doubt measly life, correct," The Head Councilor cut her off with a raise of his hand, getting astonished looks from his fellow councilors. "In accordance with Martian Law, a species set to be exterminated by Martian Law is entitled to an opportunity to defend itself in battle…"

"...wait, really?" The pony tailed hothead asked, pretty surprised herself.

"Indeed. However, in order to be given this opportunity, a martian must stand in the defense of the species to be exterminated...and what fool martian would do that?" He stole a sidelong glance at M Male Prime, who was glaring hatefully back at him. However, before anyone could say anything first, Milly looked up, right into the Head Councilor's eyes.

"This fool martian," She responded defiantly.

"What!? M-149-" Her mother started to say, but the three lesser members of the council leered at her, forcing her to shut her mouth in fear.

"M-149, do you understand the consequences of your decision?" The Martian leader asked her robotically. "Doing so will get you labelled a traitor to Martian kind...you will never be able to return to Mars and you will die along the rest of these vermin."

"I understand that full well, but it doesn't change a thing," The little pink alien informed him. "In the time I have spent with these Earthlings...living among them, learning their ways, eating their food, playing their games, even fighting alongside them...I admit that I have grown a certain respect for the species as a whole." She turned her head toward Miss Grimwood and Mr Van Ghoul, then turning her head to her friends, Lincoln, Tanis and Gila especially. "Some more respect than others. For the longest time, I was led to believe I was the superior being, and perhaps I am...in intelligence. But the people of Earth actually excel in many other manners...physical strength…" She gestured toward Silas, Lynn, and Winnie. "...cunning, out of the box thinking…" She pointed out Elsa, Sibella, Lincoln, and Suki. "...empathy…" Tanis, Gila, Mark and Lucy. "...and the one thing most Earthlings have that almost every Martian lacks, myself included...heart." She focused especially on the Louds and Phantasma with that comment. "Despite me waving my superiority in their faces, they still welcomed me into their lives. They showed me friendship. They taught me what they knew. They encouraged me to pursue piloting and aerial drone combat. They stood by my side when the monster hunter tried to slay us all. Certainly more than I can say for my family back on Mars." She frowned over at her mother, who simply frowned back at her. "These Earthlings are more than worthy of my respect, and I will not stand idle while you threaten their lives…"

"Very well, M-149. As the Earthlings are one to say, it is your funeral," The scarlet head of the council said with an ever so slight smirk. "Martian Law dictates that you must choose an Earthling to fight along with you against two chosen to represent the glorious people of Mars."

"Of course." M-149 responded before she turned to her group of friends and started to think. No doubt any of them would join her in a heartbeat, but she had to pick carefully. She crossed Tanis, Gila, and Mark from her mental list; they weren't fighters, and she suspected this was going to be a tough fight. Silas, Winnie and Lynn, on the other hand, were. The problem there was they each had tempers, which would cloud their judgement, and she felt their will would be lacking. Elsa and Sibella both had greater wills and could fight in a pinch. However, Elsa could only really fight if she were angry, and she didn't think Sibella would follow her lead; leading came more naturally to the vampiress, but she was up against an unknown foe in the martians. Lisa...yeah, no. Phantasma seemed a likely choice, since her incorporeal body would help her against physical attacks and martian weaponry. However, how would she react to a mental attack? Milly wasn't sure. Finally, there was Lincoln. While not as skilled as his more physically adept friends and sister, he had kept up his training, so he could fight. His magic would be a nice wild card, since Martian kind was unfamiliar with magic. He had a good, tactical mind, and she felt he would listen to her regarding the dangers of facing her people. "I choose Lincoln Loud," She stated clearly.

"I accept," The one son replied, his breathing heavy as he tried to keep himself calm.

"The Council acknowledges your choice of Earthlings. Earthling, make your peace while you can." With that, Lincoln's loves, family and friends huddled around him, most of them beside themselves with worry.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sibella asked him, taking his hand in hers.

"I am, Sibella...though I suspect if I wasn't, it'd be too late now," He answered quietly.

"Ah, Linc'll be fine," The werewolf girl said, patting him on the back with a grin.

"Yeah. If the martians they choose are anything like Milly or these bean poles, he'll destroy them without even trying," Lynn agreed with a bigger grin.

"Nevertheless, be careful Linky," The giggly ghost pleaded, hugging the Loud warlock from behind.

"Yeah, big brother...we don't know what tricks they have up their sleeves," A very nervous Tanis added.

"I must concur with Tanis, Elder Brother. Take the utmost care against these opponents, particularly as the very fate of the world depends on it," His mastermind sister told him.

"So, no pressure, Lincoln…" Lucy commented sarcastically, frowning at Lisa.

"I'll be alright, everyone," He told them, giving them a weak smile through his anger.

"We know, lad, but watch yerself all the same." The muscle bound minotaur told him, keeping his eyes on the High Council. Lincoln nodded before he gave Sibella and Phanty each a loving kiss, and started giving hugs to his sisters and Tanis (the creature's daughter slipping in to get a hug as well). Once he shook hands with Elsa, Silas and Mark, he took a deep breath and walked over beside M-149. The two teachers of Grimwood's school moved themselves out of the way, standing by their students and guests.

"With the chosen combatants of Earth chosen, it is time for the warriors of Mars to arrive." The Head Councilor nodded to the more aggressive councilor to his left, who pulled out a tiny communicator that looked like it came out of 'Star Journey'. "I believe you will find our chosen combatants quite...familiar, M-149."

"Familiar? What do you think he means by that?" Lincoln leaned over to whisper to Milly.

"I have a horrible suspicion…" She whispered back, putting her hand on her laser.

"The first chosen fighter is one of your older brothers…" Milly's eyes widened atop their stalks. "...specifically, M-023."

"Oh blitznak…" The little alien groaned as a bright, very large ring of light shone down from above. When it reached the ground, a large martian man almost as big as the school building appeared several feet behind the two. Lincoln's mouth hung open as he slowly looked up at the mountain of an alien. He was wearing a giant sized blue suit similar to Milly's, but even in giant sized, it didn't fit his blobulous form. Unlike all other Martians present, he wasn't wearing a helmet, instead having some kind of tube in his mouth. He was smirking down at the two of them, clenching his oversized fists.

"And Mars' second representative is one of your elder sisters, M-008." A second, small ring descended from the heavens, bringing forth a martian woman that, while smaller than 023, was still taller than both Lincoln and Milly. She wore the same style of suit, with a kind of glass bubble around her ovaloid head. By martian standards, she was a total knockout, and even the one son had to admit she was weirdly attractive. Her arms and fingers were as long as she was tall.

"Milly...any advice you can give on fighting them?" The middle Loud whispered to her.

"Don't let them catch you…" She muttered, drawing her laser pistol.

"...was hoping for something a little more-"

"Begin!" With the sudden start to the battle, Lincoln and Milly were forced to move quickly to avoid 023's gargantuan fist, the two being separated. The force was enough to knock Lincoln on his back, while M-149 was able to roll away and right herself quickly. She turned her raygun toward her older sister, who was walking pretty casually toward her with a malevolent look on her face. Without hesitation, she opened fire upon her. However, 008 was very agile and flexible, able to bend and twist her way out of the line of fire.

"You always were a lousy shot, 149…" She taunted the little martian, still approaching nice and slow. Meanwhile, Lincoln had to flip to his feet and put some distance between him and the giant alien. However, 023's size meant he could catch up with the white haired boy with a single step, then swing at him with his massive hands. Fortunately for the human boy, his own small size and reflexes aided him greatly in avoiding his giant foe.

"That's it, Linc! Keep moving! Keep him guessing!" His older sister yelled out to him, trying to hide just how worried she was. She taught Lincoln a few tricks to handle a larger opponent, but not to THIS scale.

"Ye got this, Lass!" Silas called encouragingly to Milly. "Zap her good!"

"...this is just despicable…" Miss Grimwood commented, looking disapprovingly at this battle. "Forcing M-149 to fight her own family…"

"Indeed...though she doesn't seem to mind so much," Lisa commented as she observed, as worried as everyone else though she didn't show it.

"It's like I said, Miss Loud…" Milly's father said, still messing with his handheld. "We martians, sadly, aren't as closely connected to our families as you Earthlings are...in their minds, we lose one child, we have hundreds more…" He shook his head. "Quite depressing, I must say…" He took a sidelong glance to his wife, only to do a double take. M Female Prime was actually looking very worried about what was going on. She didn't even scold him. Back on Mars, she wouldn't permit her children to fight in such a manner. It was very unbecoming of those with her genes, yet she now had to watch as her children were forced to fight one another. It was making the martian mother a nervous wreck.

"Er...shouldn't you be watching this too, sir?" The aquatic girl asked.

"I am, little Earthling," He responded without looking up. "The council is broadcasting this battle all over Mars…" He gestured upward, where a floating bronze orb was hovering over the battle. The sphere had a small, rectangular opening on it, where the camera was probably located.

"They're recording it!?

"Just means all of Mars will see Linc and Milly kick some butt," Lynn commented.

'Love the confidence you're showing, Lynn...but this isn't looking good,' The one son thought as he backflipped away from a giant stomping foot. As soon as he got back to his feet, he conjured a pair of magic missiles and hurled them up at 023. However, the giant alien simply backhanded the arcane projectiles away. '...how the heck do I even begin to fight this guy?' He wondered, leaping back to avoid a swinging fist. 'Maybe I could have tripped him up if he had bootlaces...wait. I think I have an idea.' He smirked right before he started running, seemingly like a scared little bunny. 023 grinned even wider as he started to chase after Lincoln. Before the king sized pink martian could catch up with him, the Loud warlock skidded to a stop while turning around, placing a hand on the ground.

"Terran zoloth!" He chanted, a large stone pillar rising suddenly in front of 023's foot. The monster alien hit the rock and started to fall...right for Lincoln. "Oops! Aerosa Elonta!" A cylindrical tornado shot from his hands, striking the ground and sending the white haired boy flying backwards, away from the falling martian. The impact caused the ground to shake, nearly knocking everyone nearby off their feet. "Whew...that was close…"

"Grrrr...you tripped me…" 023 growled as he started to get back up, glaring at the young man. He once more swung at Lincoln and, this time, the young man couldn't get out of the way. He was grabbed in his fingers the size of tree trunks by his lower half, his hands and arms still free. "Hehehe...I got you now," He grunted smugly as he rose to his large feet. "I wonder how earthlings taste." The white haired boy gulped, his mind racing for a moment as he was moved toward 023's mouth. He thrusted both hands toward 023's face, sending two powerful surges of wind right into him. The force of the wind forced Lincoln away from the gaping maw, while the alien continued to try and wolf him down. Lincoln focused as much as he could on the spell, throwing as much swirling wind into his opponent's face. He wasn't giving up, however, struggling to try and move his hand closer to his mouth. He wanted to eat this little Earthling.

"You know, 023...we have a saying here on Earth!" The one son yelled over the sound of rushing wind.

"What's that!?"

"The bigger they are…" He suddenly threw his hands back, the swirling winds propelling himself and his opponent's fist, right toward his face. 023's eyes widened in surprise as he was suddenly punched right in the teeth by his own fist. His grip on Lincoln loosened as he started to fall, with his intended victim falling toward the dirt. The Loud warlock pointed one hand toward the group, conjuring another cyclone to keep himself in the air. "...the harder they fall," He continued as 023 fell face down onto the ground.

* * *

Inside Grimwood's School, up on the second level, Ignatius and Avalina were watching the battle take place from a window. The vampire teen's face was one of calculation, while Ava's seemed more uncertain. "Hmmm. An interesting battle so far, to say the least."

"Truth be told, I'm not sure who to root for…" The lamia admitted, gently scratching at her cheek with one of her long nails.

"Is that so, Avalina?" Ignatius turned slightly to look at her from the corner of his eye.

"Well...I would want Milly to win, of course...but the human...I wouldn't shed a tear if he didn't make it…"

"Ah. I see. Bad blood between you and Mr Loud?" He asked her, though he already knew the answer. "Well, I wouldn't mind it either…"

"You wouldn't?" Ava turned to the pale blue teen, looking surprised.

"Keep a secret?" She nodded. "While I have nothing personal against Mr Loud, his presence here is...detrimental to my eventual goals here."

"Sibella, you mean?"

"Heh. I suppose it was pretty obvious. I'd be very surprised if he doesn't see it himself, but I digress. While his end would probably make things easier for me, one simple fact has to be faced in this case." His smile faded as he looked back to her. "Milly needs him right now to win this fight...if he dies now, her chances of winning are nil...and if she loses, we all lose. So like him or not, we need to hope he will bring her to victory…" Avalina just silently stared at him for a moment before she nodded lightly, looking back to the fight.

* * *

Over with Milly and 008, her taller sister was starting to go on the offensive now. She stretched her arm outward, like she was some kind of rubber superheroine, lashing out with whip like fingers. M-149 was stumbling about like a gunman were shooting at her feet, ordering her to 'dance'. She didn't have an opening to take aim and fire back, as she was so focused on evasion. "I don't think I'll ever understand you, 149." 008 said, in a siren-ish voice with a cruel undertone. "I mean, I knew you were the stupidest of all of us...even 023 with Earthling like intelligence isn't as stupid as you...but to turn against Mars? That is the epitome of idiocy." She gave a cruel laugh as she kept whipping her fingers at her younger sister. "Siding with the Earth dogs, daring to face off against the council and your superior siblings, choosing the most pathetic looking Earthling…" She glanced up at the currently flying Loud. "Seriously, Zyyak...are you that suicidal?"

"Don't call me Zyyak…" Milly growled, her grip on her blaster tightening as she ducked under her swinging limbs. "And Lincoln is-"

"Lincoln? You actually took the time to learn an Earthling's name? Ha!"

"...Lincoln is smarter than the average Earthling...as you can see by the way he is outwitting our larger brother."

"Oh please...anyone can outwit 023. That's not an accomplishment, Zyyak. As for being smarter than an average Earthling, that's like comparing a slimoid to a dunehound...Though I do think the Earthling would make for a nice pet at that...if he's even house broken…" Her next scoffing laugh was cut off by a cry of pain as Milly stomped her little foot onto one of her flailing fingers. She then proceeded to fire a barrage of laser blasts right into her arm at point blank. 008 screamed in agony as she pulled her arm back, causing 149 to slip and fall onto her back. The taller alien with the stretching limbs looked at her badly burned arm with tear filled eyes.

"Say something like that about my friend again, and next time, it'll be your head…" The little martian cautioned her as she got back to her feet.

"You little ZYYAK!" 008 screeched before she started swinging wildly, which made her mother gasp and even the council members' eyes bulged in surprise.

"008! Language!" M Female Prime snapped. For all the good it did, she may as well have not said anything, though. The furious martian continued to scream curses at her little sister while swinging wildly at her. However, it meant she wasn't paying attention to defense; a fact Milly gladly capitalized on. After a few ducks and dodges, she would take a pop shot at 008, getting her twice in the chest and one in the shoulder with some of her shots. They weren't enough to stop her, but it did clearly hurt.

"That's the way to do it, Milly!" Tanis cheered, smiling as she saw her friend and 'big brother' winning this fight.

"Milly!? 149, have you adopted an Earth-!?"

"Mother unit, this is neither the time, nor the place to discuss this!" Milly retorted through gritted teeth as she tried to focus on not getting whipped. Her mother was quite angry that her daughter dared to talk back to her, but she had to admit she was right. She would scold her later.

From up above, Lincoln was watching the fallen giant on the ground as he kept himself flying with his wind spells. For some reason, the large martian was still laying on the ground, seemingly just breathing into the grass. In reality, he was actually crying. The one son briefly considered going in for a closer look, but he knew better than that. Good thing too, because 023 suddenly swung back with all his might, pure fury in his face (as well as a very nasty bruise) and tears in his eyes. If Lincoln had been any closer, that swing would have swatted him out of the sky and he doubted he would have survived the impact with whatever he hit at the end. The fuming martian quickly stood up, swinging at the human boy like he was trying to swat a fly. The one son darted in every direction to avoid getting hit as he tried to get used to using the wind to fly. Once he got the hang of it, he soared right toward 023's face, taking a quick kick at his eye before darting away. The attack was the equivalent of getting dust in the eye for the giant, but it was still an annoying distraction. The Loud warlock grinned as he continued his hit and run tactics; zipping in to get a kick or two in, then jetting away before 023 could strike back.

"Yeah! Literally floating like a butterfly, stinging like a bee!" Winnie was grinning ear to ear as Lincoln continued to basically annoy the jumbo sized martian. So far, things were looking good, much to the chagrin of the Head Councilor. Lincoln may not be doing much to 023, but Milly was doing some damage to 008 with her ray gun. Now her wrathful older sister was forced to resume evasive tactics. Things were not going their way. His way. Something had to be done. He looked up at the annoying Earthling with the white hair, focusing on him as his eyestalks started to radiate with a violet aura. Just as Lincoln went in for another shot, he suddenly froze. It was like he was paralyzed; he tried to move any part of him, but he could. He couldn't even maintain the spell any longer, so he started to fall toward the ground.

"Lincoln!" Sibella cried in concern.

"Wait...why did he stop?" Elsa asked with a deep frown on her face. She turned her head toward the nearby martians, suspecting foul play. M Female Prime looked just as surprised as they were. M Male Prime was...over by the ship? What was he doing over there? It looked like he had a panel open on the side of the unusual weapon on the ship and looking rather casual about it. She didn't have time to really consider this, however, as she then turned to the Council. She could clearly see the Head Councilor's aura as he continued to stare at the middle Loud until he fell right into 023's hands. She narrowed her eyes at him, but he simply glanced over at her once he noticed her staring. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Just like Lincoln, she suddenly seized up and collapsed to the ground.

"Elsa? What happened?" The youngest of the older sisters asked as she, Mark and Miss Grimwood knelt by the reanimated teen.

"The Head Councilor is cheating," Lucy muttered under her breath, anger burning behind her words. "He paralyzed Lincoln, and then Elsa to keep her quiet."

"What!?"

"Keep it down, or he'll do the same to us too…" The little goth whispered.

"Are you sure about this, Lucy?" Abigail inquired under her breath.

"Positive. I've been watching them just as much as the battle...though they can't tell," Without moving her head, she looked up to where her brother was now in the grasp of the huge alien. This time, his arms were pinned to his sides, making it near impossible for him to use his magic.

"Hahaha! I got you now!" 023 bellowed with a vicious sneer.

"Lincoln!" Milly exclaimed, looking up at her captive friend. Her lapse in concentration cost her, as 008 was able to wrap all ten tendril like fingers around her, like a knot of constrictors.

"Ha! Now I'll squish you like red clay, Zyyak!" She had a borderline insane smirk on her face as she started to crush her own little sister in her grasp. The very same thing was unfortunately happening to Lincoln in 023's hands. He fought, of course, but he was nowhere near strong enough to break free. They both grimaced as the pressure and the pain increased exponentially with each passing second.

"Stop it! You're killing them!" Phanty cried out, tears filling their eyes.

"'Milly' knew what she was getting herself into...and failed to inform the insect fighting with her," The Head Councilor replied simply and coldly.

"What…? You never said this was going to be a battle to the death!" M Female Prime snapped, much to even her own surprise.

"I didn't think it needed to be said. After all, that is the way it has been done on Mars for eons. The battle will continue until the combatants surrender, or die...and that is reliant upon their opponent accepting surrender…"

"What...no...they wouldn't…" Lynn looked up in horror at her brother, whose face was turning red. Then, they heard the very distinct crack of bones breaking, and a bloodcurdling scream from Lincoln's mouth. "NO!" Before anyone could try and stop her, Lynn made a mad dash toward the fray, but slammed right into an invisible barrier, which flung her right back into the crowd of Lincoln's friends.

"There will be no interference of the battle…" The Martian Leader said in his machine-ish monotone.

"Hypocrite…" Lucy growled, tears spilling from behind her hair. Milly wiggled and squirmed as much as she could as her older sister squeezed her harder and harder. Her face was turning purple. If she didn't do something soon, it would all be over. She pushed with what little might she had left...and her gun hand slipped through 008's fingers.

'I'll only get one shot…' She thought to herself as she tried to aim her gun at this very awkward angle, then pulled the trigger. The beam flew through the air, and struck 023 right in the exposed shin. The giant martian's eyes grew nearly as big as boulders as he started to roar in pain and bawl like a little baby, holding his shin with one hand as he hopped up and down on one leg. His grasp loosened enough to free one of Lincoln's arms (fortunately not his broken one). He was still in severe pain, but he needed to do something and now.

"Ar...Arcta….Encassi." He groaned as he placed his hand on his own chest. The moment the magic words left his lips, sharp icicles shot out from his body. 023 screamed in pain against as he let the one son go. The white haired boy started to fall to the ground, one arm hanging useless by his side and one leg was bent the wrong way. As he descended, he created a light orb in his good hand and hurled it over at 008. Giving the brightness of the ball, she easily noticed it coming right for her.

"Hmph. Idiot human…" She grumbled as she lashed out at it with one of her arms. The impact caused the orb to explode in a bright flash. "AGH! My eyes!" 008 screamed as she got an eyeful, covering both of her eyes with her hands. Milly fell to her knees, almost coughing up a lung (or the martian equivalent) as Lincoln once more conjured wind to soften his landing.

"Lin...coln...are you alright?"

"...Truthfully? No…" He admitted with a groan."You?"

"Could be better...but I can still fight."

"...Good. I have an idea...you go fight 023…" He continued, pointing a thumb at the bawling giant who was waving one hand and hopping up and down on one foot.

"...What?" M-149 looked over at Lincoln like he lost his marbles.

"Trust me. This guy has no pain tolerance. You can blast him into submission with your raygun."

"But what about you?"

"Again, trust me. I have a plan for fighting 008…" He informed her as the alien with the stretchy limbs started to recover from her momentary blinding.

"...very well...be careful," Milly told him quietly as she stood up and ran to engage her bigger brother while Lincoln faced the now enraged M-008. He tried to step toward her, but fell to one knee, seemingly because of his broken leg.

"Hmph...amusing little trick insect...but I intend to finish what my brother started!" She reached her elastic fingers toward him, but the moment they started to wrap around him…

"Aerosa encapsula tallavor!" Lincoln yelled out, causing a large, fiercely spinning tornado to rise from his position. The wind speeds were strong enough that it even got 023's attention and Milly had to move quickly around her larger brother to avoid being affected. 008, however, had no such luxury. She tried to plant her feet, but her stretching arms were getting pulled along with the twister.

"Uh oh…" She muttered just before she was pulled off her feet and started being swung around like a sock in a washer. "Whoa whoa whoa whoawhoawhoawhoawhoawhoawhoawhoa!" She cried out as she spun faster and faster. Inside the eye of the cyclone, the one son just smirked.

"Round and round…" He sang softly as her fingers started to slip from his body. "What comes around goes around…" After a few seconds, 008 was hurled across the grounds and slammed against the old weeping willow tree, causing the dead tree to lean from the impact. 'Heh. Luna and Luan would be proud of that one.'

"Sister! I'll crush you, human!" 023 yelled, but before he could move, a sharp stabbing pain shot up his leg. At this moment, the Head Councilor glanced at the lavender headed martian beside him and gave her a signal with a sweep of his arm. She nodded in reply and turned her attention to the camera hovering overhead.

"No you won't!" Milly exclaimed, firing her laser into the back of his legs.

"Ow! Ow! OOOWW!" The massive martian tried to cover his legs with his hands, only for his hands to become targets. Not that she needed to aim for either; she could hardly miss him in general he was so big. While she was bringing her giant sized brother to his knees, Lincoln propelled himself over to 008 with a wind spell, who was pretty out of it from dizziness and pain. He was getting pretty tired with all the magic he was using, but with what he had planned, he didn't need much more.

"Arcta," He chanted through gritted teeth, a burst of freezing snow and ice flowing from in front of him. Frost and ice started to form on her body right when she started to come to.

"Ugh...huh!?" She gasped as she realized she was being frozen. "I...can't move."

"I thought that would work," Lincoln commented with a weak smile. "Nothing slows someone with elastic powers faster than freezing them."

"...perhaps you are a little more clever than I imagined, Earthling…" She begrudgingly admitted before a slight smirk came to her lips. "However...there's one thing you overlooked." Her eyes glowed dark green. Lincoln's eyes flashed before he reached his one functioning hand to his head.

"Gah!" He grunted, feeling a sort of pressure in his head.

"Hehehe. Looks like the little Zyyak never warned you that martians gain mental abilities as they grow older, did she? I have an iron grasp on your very brain," She informed him with an evil grin. "I could shake it up if I so choose…" She proceeded to demonstrate, Lincoln's head shaking along with it. He was almost overwhelmed with a sense of vertigo and nausea. "I could control your limbs…" She forced his good arm to grab his broken one and yank on it.

"AGH!" Lincoln cried out, but he was helpless to resist her mental compulsion.

"Stop! Stop! Please!" 023 screamed, laying on his back and crying his eyes out as Milly's raygun started to smoke. It looked like it was overheating from overuse, but she wasn't about to stop now. "Please, sister! I concede! I surrender! Just no more!"

"Do you promise, M-023? You yield?"

"Yes! I give up! You wiiiiiiiin!" The giant sobbed. The little martian nodded slightly, then turned her attention to Lincoln as he screamed.

"...or I could crush it, reducing your measly monkey brain to jelly…" She heard 008 tell him.

"No!" She turned her smoking ray at her older sister and fired. The last light beam streaked through the air and blasted a hole in and out of her fishbowl like helmet.

"What!? No! No no no!" 008 screamed, slowly and painfully moving her frozen fingers to try and cover the holes. While she was in a panic over the holes in her helmet, the small, but furious pink alien stormed her way over to her older sister, grabbing her by her frost covered spacesuit.

"Release Lincoln immediately, or prepare to taste oxygen," She warned her with a serious growl, holding her now spent laser up, ready to smash her helmet.

"No! Not that! I'll release him! See?" Her eyes returned to normal, Lincoln falling back on his rear in a daze.

"Are you alright, Lincoln?"

"I...I think so," He responded, his senses not quite there. "That...mental grip didn't hurt at all...but holy spit did it feel weird…" Milly nodded to him, then glared back at her sister.

"You have one chance to surrender…"

"Ok, M-149...you...you win. I surrender…" 008 stammered.

"Good." She said, before she slammed the handle of her laser pistol onto her helmet, leaving a big crack in it.

"NOOOOOO!" 008 screamed in utter fear.

"Oh, don't be such a podling…" Milly said before she pocketed her weapon. "Oxygen won't kill you...spineless zorlog…" She spat out before she turned to face the livid members of the Council. "We have met your challenge and succeeded. In accordance with Martian Law-"

"Youngling, Martian Law is for me to decide, not you," The Head Councilor responded with barely contained rage.

"What? But you said-"

"Regardless of what may have been said before, my word is final, youngling, and it is my decision that the vermin of Earth are proven too dangerous to exist."

"Gee...didn't see THAT coming…" M Male Prime commented sarcastically as he rejoined his shellshocked wife.

"Head Councilor, this is unacceptable!" Miss Grimwood said, the last of her patience having been exhausted. "You've forced my students into this barbaric spectacle, nearly killed them both, and now you are going back on your word!? How dare you!"

"Silence, Earth Elder. The will of the Council is final. The Earth is to be destroyed...with 'Milly' to be destroyed with it," He continued, looking at M-149 with disgust. She just sneered in return as the strange cannon turned, pointing over to where the group of Grimwood Students, staff, Lisa and Lynn were standing.

"You know what...it suits me. I would rather die than return to a Mars run by the likes of you," She spat in response before she started to help Lincoln back over to everyone. Miss Grimwood, Sibella, Phanty, Lynn, Lucy, Lisa, Tanis and Gila immediately converged on the injured boy.

"Linc...you holding up alright, bro…?"

"I'll live, Lynn...but I think that hurt A LOT more than Sigmund…" He groaned, holding his ribs with his good hand.

"Head Councilor...you have just disgraced the honor of the glorious people of Mars," M Male Prime spoke up, stepping forward with his head held high and the serious look returning to his face. "One does not simply refuse to uphold their end of the bargain after a loss in the challenge of battle. The traditions around the challenge are sacred, and failure to adhere to them brings the direst of consequences, no matter who you are."

"...I must thank you, M Male Prime," The martian leader said, not even looking in his direction. "The Council has been growing tired of you over the years...and now, with your defiance of the will of the Council-"

"Say it like it is. YOUR will. You're the only one speaking."

"-you can die with the rest of the trash," He finished, as if the martian father had never spoken. M Male Prime simply scoffed at them as he moved over to join his little daughter. 023, having recovered from the worst of the pain of being zapped repeatedly, had picked up his older sister and made a move toward the spaceship. "Hold. Where do you two think you're going?"

"Home?" The giant martian answered.

"You and M-008 have failed in your duties. You failed Mars. You failed the Council. You will not return to Mars. You will join the Earthlings in death."

"WHAT!?" The two martian representatives gasped.

"WHAT!?" M Female Prime snapped in outrage.

"Fear not, M Female Prime. You, a loyal martian, may still return. Come forth and join us in observing the final moments of these miserable vermin." The Head Councilor gestured toward their spaceship while locking his eyes on the martian mother. She looked toward the ship, then to her distraught children, who looked about ready to cry, then toward Milly, who looked like she was about to face death with stoicism and pride. Finally, she looked toward her husband, who was looking back with a softness and warmness not usually associated with martian's. He held a hand out to her, waiting for her to take it. She thought for a moment, then turned toward the four members of the Council.

"No," She answered firmly, surprising the Council, her children, and even herself once again. "M Male...my husband is right. What you are doing is a heinous violation of the sacred laws of the challenge."

"One of many," Lucy added. "Don't think no one saw how you used your mental powers to disrupt Lincoln in the middle of his battle…"

"Ah, yes. A clear act of cowardice if I ever heard one." The martian leader leered at M Male Prime, but once again, pretended he said nothing.

"The people of Mars will not tolerate such cowardly actions, nor such flagrant disregard for the most sacred traditions and laws of Mars…" M Female Prime continued on.

"Why would the people of Mars know? No one here will tell them...especially not you, M Female Prime. I must say, I am disappointed in you...I thought you were a loyal martian...but you are no better than that layabout you call a mate. You will all die on this miserable mudball."

"What about the cameras!? They would have broadcasted everything!" Winnie pointed out.

"The cameras? I'm afraid a malfunction caused them to go out mid way through the battle...but the people will still know the results, as told to them by their Head Councilor...but enough talk. Now, prepare to be exterminated." He turned toward the odd weapon on the front of the ship and his eyes started to glow. Arcs of electricity started to jump between the three orbs as the cannon like apparatus started to charge up. The electricity started to super heat the air until it started to form a ball of plasma in the center of it. The Loud sisters, Sibella, Phanty, and Gila all clung to Lincoln as they all braced themselves. Silas grabbed Winnie and Mark and moved in front of the unconscious Elsa, he and Suki preparing to take the blast for them. Miss Grimwood and Mr Van Ghoul both raised their hands upward and started to prepare a magical barrier to protect themselves and the children.

"Save your energy…" M Male Prime told them as the ball of plasma grew larger and larger. "Your magic wouldn't be able to withstand the Plasma Core Drill. It was designed to bore through even the toughest of rocks and metals." He then smirked slightly. "Besides, there is nothing to be concerned about." The residents of Earth looked at him, wondering what he meant when the cannon started to shudder and shake. The four members of the Council looked toward the trembling weapon, moving closer to investigate. Rays of light were shining from the machine as the plasma ball destabilized and faded. It looked like it was about to self-destruct, but as the plasma core drill reached critical, a flash of light exploded from it. When everyone was able to see again, the Council, the ship and its plasma weapon were all gone. There was no sign of damage on the ground, nor was there any sound of an explosion or anything.

"...what...what just happened?" Lincoln asked, his eyes still kind of stinging.

"While they weren't looking, I decided I would make a few...improvements...to the plasma core drill. A few crossed wires here, a few changes in code there, a few adjusted computer boards and presto. Instant teleporter." M Male Prime explained proudly.

"You, sir, truly are a genius," Lisa commented with a smile.

"What drove you to do that, M Male Prime?" His wife asked him.

"Simple: I don't trust the Head Councilor," He answered, moving over to check on Milly first, then moving over to make sure 023 and 008 were alright as well.

"Where did you send them?" The one son asked.

"Back to Mars."

"But...won't they just come back?" Lynn asked, looking up at the sky. "Or try and blast us from Mars with that thing?" The martian father just chuckled when she said that.

"To answer your second question first, no. The plasma core drill may be powerful enough to cut right through to the core of a planet, it doesn't have the range to attack another planet. They could turn it up to full power and barely tickle the closest moon. As for your first question, no. I don't think they will."

"How can you be so sure, father unit?" Milly asked curiously. "If they are willing to break the sacred code of the challenge…"

"They won't be returning because they will have FAR greater problems back home, courtesy of his own big mouth and ego." M Male Prime's smirk grew even more after he said that.

"But...how? He said the cameras…" Winnie started to say, but Lisa cut her off, realization hitting her.

"You seized control of their own broadcasting equipment, didn't you?" In answer, he pulled out his personal device, holding it where they could see it.

"Yep. Every citizen of Mars saw and heard the whole thing. Safe to say, they won't be happy with the High Council for that stunt." He laughed softly for a moment, but then his smirk faded. "...we may want to lay low for a week or two though...longer if the Council are removed from power...the power vacuum alone will cause no end of chaos on Mars."

"Not that we could return to Mars anyway...the only ship was teleported away with the Council…" His wife said with a sigh.

"...what will we do?" The gargantuan alien asked, looking down at his smaller, older sister in his hands. She was holding onto the crack in her helmet with one hand, but seemed a little out of sorts; a touch dizzy and kind of loopy. Miss Grimwood instructed the others to bring Lincoln back into the school and into the infirmary. She would be up in a moment to help him mend his mend his broken bones. Silas took the one son in his arms, who was starting to tear up as the adrenaline was wearing off and the pain was starting to hit him full force, and ran off with the rest of Lincoln's friends and his sisters right behind him. Before she went up, she turned to look at the martian family, thinking for a moment.

"Pardon me, Mr M, Mrs M…" She said, getting the attention of the parents. "If you need a place to stay, I would be more than happy to have you here at Grimwood's."

"Would you, Miss Grimwood? That's mighty kind of you." The alien father said with an appreciative smile.

"Would...that include our children, Earth El-Miss Grimwood?" M Female Prime asked her, correcting herself mid sentence. Abigail looked over at M-023 and M-008 with a serious expression, considering the issue.

"Under normal circumstances, giving what they did to Lincoln and M-149, I would say no…" She started, holding up a hand when the martian mother opened her mouth. "However, I understand that they have nowhere else to go...so, if you can give me your words that they will behave themselves, they can stay as well."

"Rest assured, Miss Grimwood. I will personally ensure our children are on their best behavior...and they will apologize to M-149 and the youngling as well." M Female Prime said, giving the evil eye to her two children currently present. "Correct?"

"Yes, mother unit…" 023 answered fearfully. He then nodded his smaller, yet older sister's head for her. "...but, how am I going to get in that small house…?"

"Allow me, Abigail," Vincent said, placing a hand on Miss Grimwood's shoulder. "I will assist M-149's family, while you see to Lincoln's injuries."

"Thank you, Vincent," The motherly witch said before she disappeared in a swish of her shawl, the seasoned warlock looking up at the giant alien as he considered how he was going to go about this.

* * *

Fixing Lincoln's broken bones was, fortunately, not a long endeavor, courtesy of magic. However, it was far from easy, and it wasn't painless. In addition to his arm and leg, some of his ribs had cracked as well, making things more complicated. As Miss Grimwood and Sibella worked on casting the healing spell, Lynn and Tanis stood by Lincoln's side, holding his good hand, with Lucy and Phanty at his other side as he lay in a bed inside the Grimwood School nurse's office. The office was larger than most rooms in the school, filled with several beds, a desk with a filing cabinet beside it, a cabinet loaded with potions and medicine, and one with herbs and potion ingredients. Unlike most of the school, the infirmary was, naturally, spotless.

The one son tried his best to hold in his cries, tears practically pouring from his eyes, but at some points, the pain of his bones mending was too much, leaving him screaming out in anguish. "Easy, Linc...you got this," His athletic sister said in an attempt to comfort him, the little mummy petting his hand. "You're made of tough stuff...well, not as tough as me, but still tough."

"Sssssshhh...you'll be alright, Linky...Miss Grimwood and Sibella will heal you," Phantasma said softly, brushing his hair gently. "It's almost over…"

"He'll be alright...right?" The little skeleton asked Winnie in a whisper.

"Of course, he will," Winnie responded confidently in spite of her own fears to the contrary. "We've patched him from far worse before...debatably…" She muttered the last word under her breath, so Mark couldn't hear her. "He'll be fine," She said just as Lincoln cried out loudly once more. The werewolf girl cringed before adding, "...really he will." With that last scream, the headmistress and vampiress completed the healing spell, leaving the white haired boy breathing heavily and coated in sweat.

"How are you feeling now, Lincoln?" Miss Grimwood inquired, Silas helping support her while Suki kept Sibella on her feet, the two of them looking quite drained.

"...the worst of the pain is gone," He told them before giving them a weak smile. "Thanks to both of you."

"You're quite welcome, Lincoln…" The daughter of Dracula replied, smiling in return.

"I would recommend resting your body for a few days, Lincoln," The motherly witch told him. "Your bones may be healed, but they will be quite tender for a while. We wouldn't want to risk damaging them again."

"No, we wouldn't," The one son agreed as his sisters, girlfriends and friends went in for a big hug. He winced a little, his muscles still very sore as well.

"Heh. I can't get over it," Lynn commented once the group hug broke up. "My little brother fought martians with a martian, and they saved the world. My friends will never believe this."

"Just as well…" Lisa interjected. "The government would obviously prefer to keep the incident under wraps. For the good of all, I suggest you do not tell anyone this happened."

"Wait...seriously?" The youngest of the older sisters groaned in protest, looking as upset as she sounded. "Linc's a big hero here, but we can't tell anyone about it…?"

"I'm afraid so. It's for the best, particularly for M-149."

"Well, they're still our heroes." Suki said with a big smile, patting the little martian on the helmet.

"Speaking of, thanks a lot, M-149," the one son said as he looked at the young alien. "You saved my life twice out there."

"Think nothing of it, Lincoln. You've saved me out there as well. Besides, you're my friend. Is that not what friends do?" The middle Loud nodded, holding a hand out to her, which she took and shook with enthusiasm.

* * *

Later that night, things seemed calm and quiet in the school. Most of the students had returned to their rooms, Lynn and Lisa had went home, the martian family was getting settled in the basement, and Lincoln was fast asleep in the infirmary. However, he wasn't alone. While Milly felt her parents would keep her siblings under control, she didn't want to take any chances with M-008, so she suggested they all take turns staying with him over the night. After she voiced her concerns, Lincoln's friends all agreed. Right now, it was Avalina's turn, and she looked rather upset about it. She felt like she was tricked into it. However, Gosuki had convinced her. "Ava, I know you've had some bad experiences with humans…" The young kaiju's voice said in her head as she remembered the moment. "...but is it really fair to judge him based on a few bad eggs? Besides, if the roles were reversed, he'd do the same for you."

"...I could have told her I was just allergic to humans and can't be near them, but nooooo...I said I was bullied by humans…" The lamia grumbled to herself, coiled up beside his bed while watching the door. "...hindsight sucks." She looked over at the sleeping young man with a hard expression. 'You're more trouble than you're worth…' She thought to herself. Then, she heard a soft voice in the back of her head. 'You know...this would be the ideal time to deal with him,' The voice said. 'Finish him off, and you can blame it on the martian.' She thought about this for a moment as she looked at him, her hand slowly reaching for him. Her fingers were close to his neck when he turned a little in his sleep, a few strands of his snow white hair getting in his face. She paused for a moment...then gently brushed the hair back into place. The one son smiled in his sleep, which made Ava look away, her cheeks a soft pink.

'No,' She thought. 'Not like that...I...I don't want blood on my hands,' She justified to herself, nodding along with her inner monologue. 'I'll get him kicked out of school...eventually.' She sighed quietly to herself before she returned to her solitary vigil.

* * *

_AN: The elements in question that Alexpv22 suggested were involving a Martian High Council with Milly's story, and for Milly to give a speech in defense of the human race (particularly her friends). I was having trouble figuring out (at the time) why M-149 would be sent to an Earth school if almost all martians thought themselves superior to Earthlings. Answer: as a punishment. For what? Being kind of defiant, perhaps she talked back to a martian superior. One thing led to another, and here we are. Again, not his exact suggestion, but they laid the foundation for this chapter's conception and furthering M-149's story, so very much appreciated Alexpv22. And yes, we will be seeing more of the martians later on...possibly after a time skip._


	13. Chapter 13: Zanya's Tales

_AN: Sorry this took so long. Between work, Animal Crossing, World of Warcraft (a recent return for me) and other things, my time gets filled rather quickly these days. Still, little bits of progress added up eventually, so here we are. Before we begin, allow me to answer a few questions:_

_Gamelover41592: Not really a question, but still; give it a bit of time. Like I said, this isn't the last we'll see of the martians._

_Ironchef13: Soon enough on both counts. Just want to do a few more chapters before beginning the summer season in the story. That seems like an ideal time for a cruise._

_jster1983: Ah. Sorry. Well, if she knew she was a zombie from the start, she probably wouldn't have even given her the time of day, which means she probably wouldn't have called her uncle (at least unless she got irked enough). Also, I hadn't thought about that before, bringing the criminal response for making her a zombie back. Might make for an interesting chapter._

_Josh: I think it would be easier to give my feedback via private message, since it takes a while for me to get chapters for each story out. And we'll see._

* * *

Zanya's Tales

Just before bedtime tended to be just as hectic as just before school at the Loud House, due to the solitary bathroom in the house. However, there were ways to get around the bathroom traffic jam, if one didn't need to use the toilet, and Lincoln was more than happy to share one of these tricks with Zanya. So while the other sisters were crowded in front of the restroom sink, the zombie girl was in front of the dresser mirror in the one son's room, brushing her teeth. On top of the dresser, sitting beside her model of the Droid mothership, was a bowl of water. Once she had finished brushing her teeth and changing into her pajamas, she sat back on Lincoln's bed to do a little reading. Before she could open her book, she heard a knock at the door. "Come in." She responded. The door opened and in walked Lola and Lana, both already ready for bed. "Hi girls. What's up?"

"Hi Zayna." Lana replied. "If it's not too much trouble…"

"...could you tell us a story tonight?" Lola finished, the two of them giving her the puppy dog eyes.

"Pleeeeease?" They pleaded together. The undead girl couldn't help but giggle. The two of them were normally cute, but when they got like this, they were downright precious.

"Sure thing," She answered, setting her book down. "I'll be right there."

"Yay!" They cheered before running back to their room, shortly followed by Zanya.

"So, what are you in the mood for?" She asked as she walked over to their little book shelf, the twins getting into bed.

"Can you tell us more about your time at Grimwood's?" Lana requested excitedly.

"Hmm? Well, if you want; but I can't promise it'll be very exciting." She responded before moving one of Lola's tea party chairs between their beds. "Let's see...I guess I could begin-"

"Excuse me." Interrupted Lisa from the passage to the hall. "I couldn't help but overhear that you were about to regale my elder siblings with further tales of your days at Grimwood's school. I don't suppose you would mind a little extra company?"

"Not at all. The more the merrier." Zanya replied with a smile. Lisa smiled in return and gestured to someone in the hall. The zombie girl wondered what that was about, but found out pretty quick when not only Lisa, but Lynn, Lily, Luna, Luan, Leni and Lori all entered the room, all of them sitting wherever they could in the room. The lass from Grimwood blinked as she looked around before playfully smirking to the twins. "If I didn't know any better, I'd swear I was set up…"

"Set up? By us? Heaven forbid." Lola said in such an over the top manner they couldn't help but laugh.

"Well, anyway...where was I? Ah. Well, after Sibella recovered from Magda's backfired trap, she and I started to become friends. It was kind of tense with the others at first; she was just as much a part of the group as Magda and Yolanda…"

* * *

"I don't know, Astrid...something doesn't look right about this." Rani said, scratching her head as she looked as a beaker of bubbling greenish sludge. She was working with her trollish friend and their sentient ooze friend on a potions project. Astrid looked through her textbook with a frown, then shrugged to the chocolate colored garuda.

"We did what the book instructed so far." She wrote out. "Though I confess, this doesn't look optimal."

"...what's the next step then?"

"A sprinkling of powdered sea serpent scales. Moria, if you'd be so kind…"

"Certainly." The blob girl said, lightly sprinkling a little powder into the potion. The moment the dust made contact, the mixture started bubbling even more. "Uh oh…"

"Take cover!" The bird creature screamed, diving under a desk, closely followed by Astrid. Less than a second after they did, the potion exploded, sending glass and searing hot solution all over the place. Moria, being made of slime, was unharmed by the glass, and was fortunate enough to avoid getting hit by a glob of hot potion. "Everyone alright?"

"No harm here," Moria replied, picking the shards out of her oozy body.

"Astrid fine…"

"...Not that I'm doubting your word, Astrid, but may I see that book?" Astrid handed Rani the book she had been reading from, utterly flummoxed as to what had just occurred. Rani flipped through the pages, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. "Hmmm. Everything seemed to be right...then where-wait." She frowned as she felt one of the pages between her thumb and forefinger. "...two of these pages are stuck together."

"...Oops." The troll girl grunted, looking somewhat sheepish as her friend unstuck the pages.

"Hmmm. Two whole pages of missed instructions. Well, guess we'll just have to start from scratch." She sighed a bit as the two friends emerged from under the desk. Just then, Zanya opened the door to the alchemy lab, Sibella right behind her. The two of them look around at all the mess in the room.

"...looks like you're all hard at work. Is this a bad time?" The zombie lass inquired.

"No. No. Come on in, Zanya." Rani said, turning to look at her undead friend, and spotting the vampiress with her. She frowned at the sight of her, as did Astrid.

"What is she doing here?" Astrid wrote onto the nearest piece of paper. Sibella recoiled a bit. Though it was only in writing, the way she wrote was like she was yelling it.

"Whoa, hold on." The undead child held up her hands in front of her as Sibella kind of shrank back. "It's ok. Sibella's alright."

"Are you sure?" The garuda asked with a suspicious look.

"She did save my skin from Magda's trap, guys." Zanya told them, putting an arm around the vampiress to coax her forward. "Wouldn't you say that's worth giving her a second chance?" Rani couldn't deny that, but she was still hesitant, as was the giantkin girl. The slime child, however, smiled lightly as she slithered toward them.

"I certainly have no problem with starting over." Moria said before holding a hand to Sibella. "Hi. I'm Moria." The daughter of Dracula was a little wary at first, but slowly took her hand. It was kind of cold and clammy (which was nothing new to her), but oddly, not slimy this time.

"Sibella…" She replied nervously. The bird teen and troll girl looked to one another for a moment.

"What do you think, Astrid?"

"Well, without Magda's corrupting influence, it's possible Sibella could grow into a more decent monster." Astrid wrote in reply. "Zanya and Moria are right. It is worth giving her the chance." Rani considered her friend's words for a moment, then nodded with a smile before she moved around the desk to greet the lavender skinned young lady properly.

* * *

"...although they were willing to give her another try at friendship, they were still watchful over her." Zanya told the assembled Loud children, who were hanging on her every word. "Thankfully, Sibella proved herself worthy of their trust pretty quickly. She was still kind of a brat sometimes; needed to be the center of attention occasionally. It got annoying sometimes, of course, but never anything too serious. She almost always stopped herself before she went full Lola." Most of the sisters chuckled at that, though Lola just crossed her arms in a huff, pouting where she sat. "The rest of my first year went pretty uneventful, courtesy of Magda laying low. Rani and Astrid's graduation, however, was kind of a bittersweet moment for all of us…"

* * *

It was after the graduation ceremony at Grimwood's school, and almost all the students and most of their parents were enjoying the grad party in the dining room after. Rani was being hugged by her parents; a reddish brown eagle headed garuda woman, and a long beaked bird man who looked to have some tengu blood in him. Not far from them was Count Dracula, who was casually chatting with Trent Talon and Miss Grimwood, a glass of blood in his hand. Over by the refreshments table, Moria was introducing Zanya and Sibella to her father, The Blob, while Astrid was talking with Cynthia Talon, her own trollish mother standing by her (and not really understanding what they were saying). The only one not present was Magda, who was upstairs packing her things. Unlike her fellow graduates, the bullying banshee was planning to leave immediately. She had no reason to stay, and wasn't obligated to remain now that she had graduated properly. Not that any of her fellow students in the dining room missed her at all. Once their conversation had finished, The Blob oozed his way over to the hors d'oeuvres, Zanya grabbing a napkin to clean the slime off her hand after shaking his hand earlier. "You know, it wouldn't have been rude to clean your hand after shaking his," Moria informed her quietly with a giggle. "It happens all the time. Dad wouldn't have been offended."

"I dunno. It just seems like it. Know what I mean?" The zombie girl replied after she tossed the napkin.

"Yeah, I do," The slime teen replied before changing the subject. "Quite the party, isn't it?"

"It certainly is fang-tastic," Sibella said as she drank from a glass of iced henbane tea. "Miss Grimwood really pulled out all the stops for this party."

"She goes all out for every occasion," Moria responded before she leaned in closer to whisper. "Between the three of us, I think she's secretly a party animal in disguise." The three girls laughed at that just as Rani moved over to join them.

"Well, I'm glad to see you all having fun," The young garuda said with a smile.

"Hey Rani. Congratulations," Zanya said, giving a smile to her in return. "To both you and Astrid."

"Aww. Thanks, Zanya," Rani said before she gave the little zombie a big hug. "I'm really going to miss you. All of you."

"I'm going to miss you and Astrid too," Zanya admitted as she returned the hug. "You two and Moria were a seriously big help to me these last few months; helping me adjust to school life, helping me with Magda and Yolanda…"

"Speaking of, where is Magda?" The daughter of The Blob said as she looked around the dining room.

"Probably trying to leave quietly," Rani said with a slightly sour note in her voice, freeing Zanya from her embrace.

"Funny. Astrid doesn't see her parents around," Her trollish best friend pointed out as she plodded over. Her speaking had improved significantly over the year, though it still had a few quirks to it.

"Now that you mention it...have we ever seen her parents?" The humanoid bird wondered out loud, pausing a moment to consider the notion.

"I don't think so...I don't remember seeing them at the Halloween Open House either," Moria added, starting to look just as curious as her older friends. It was a thought none of them knew what to think of.

"So...what are your plans now that you graduated?" Sibella inquired in an effort to end the awkward pause.

"Astrid is going to continue her schooling," Astrid replied, eagerly taking the new topic of conversation. "Going to become a teacher someday."

"That sounds great, Astrid," Her winged best friend said with a big smile on her beak. "Personally, I'm going to be working on getting some hands on experience. I've already gotten an offer from Professor Ollie Drybones to work as his assistant for a few years, thanks to Miss Grimwood."

"Who is Professor Ollie Drybones?" Zanya asked curiously.

"He's an archeologist, specializing in magic and the occult," The garuda girl answered. "A very dedicated man. He didn't even let death stop him from continuing his exploration and studies."

"Wow. That is dedication," Sibella commented.

"He's very adventurous too, getting right inside the tombs, ruins, temples, etc. That's the part I'm really looking forward to."

"Well, I wish you both the absolute best," Zanya said, shaking both of their hands.

"As do we," The ooze teen added, with the vampiress nodding in agreement.

"Likewise to all of you," Astrid replied. "Astrid promise to write often to you all."

"Same here, but for right now, let's enjoy the rest of our time together," Rani suggested, gesturing over to the buffet table (or at least what was left of it). Zanya was down for that idea, as she was getting pretty hungry by this point, and she'd like to spend as much time as possible with the first friends she had made here in Grimwood's School.

* * *

"I returned home over the summer, but I kept in touch with all my friends from Grimwood during this time. A few fun times happened, but don't really have anything to do with the school, so that will have to be a story for another time. Come the start of my second year, however...that is where things started to become interesting. Why? Because with the departure of three students came the arrival of two new students…"

* * *

It was a crisp, gloomy autumn day when Zanya was dropped off in front of Grimwood's school. Overcast with the threat of rain, and a chilly wind blowing through. To some, this seemed like a glum way to start a new year at school. To a Grimwood girl, however, it was a perfect day. The little zombie was all smiles as she ran across the grounds, headed for the front door. When she threw the door open, there they were; the daughter of Dracula and the blobby teen. The friends she missed these three and a half months of summer vacation. "Sibella! Moria!" Zanya cheered as she ran toward them in the entry chamber.

"Zanya!" They called out, the three of them tightly embracing.

"Did you two have a good summer?" Moria asked after they had separated.

"Yeah. It was a lot of fun," The zombie girl responded.

"It sure was. My mothers, Daddy and I went out to Death Valley on vacation," The young vampiress told them. "The sandstorms, the scorpions, the bat caves...simply fang-tastic."

"I'm glad to hear it. My family visited the Mucks Mire Swamp again, like we do every year. Always a fun time." The slime girl explained. "Looking forward to school?"

"Most definitely. Especially magic class."

"Why am I not surprised, Miss top of the spellcrafting class?" Zanya said with a chuckle, Sibella beaming with pride. "Shame I won't be joining you guys in that class."

"Still have no idea why you can't use magic?" Moria inquired, turning her attention to Zanya.

"No, but Mom is looking into it," she replied.

"**...And before you interrupt me to ask, Lisa, yes, I do know why I cannot use magic now. I will explain in more detail a little later in the story."**

Before the three girls could continue their conversation, the front doors of the school opened once more. The trio turned to see two new faces they had never seen before. The first was a fairly tall, pale faced girl, looking like she was in her teens. She was wearing a green shirt under an olive green dress and platform sandals, and her hair was large, poofy, and black and white colored. She had stitches around her neck and wrists, and bolts sticking out of her neck. The other was a ghost around Sibella's size with an overly cheerful air about her. She was wearing an ice blue dress and her hair was white as snow with a blue streak through it. The ghost girl was examining the front room excitedly, while the taller of the two was focused on the group before them. She stepped forward, moving like her muscles were stiff. "Hi there," she said in a friendly manner, waving to them. "My name's Elsa Frankenteen."

"Hello Elsa," Sibella replied, moving forward to greet her. "I'm Sibella Dracula, and these are my friends; Moria Blob and Zanya Talon." She gestured to the ooze gal and the zombie girl who were right behind her, who waved to the reanimated girl.

"A pleasure to meet you, Miss Frankenteen," Moria said.

"This place looks amazing!" The ghost girl chirped before giggling as she floated over to join the rest of them.

"I concur. I think we're going to like it here," Elsa agreed, a smile spreading across her face.

"Hello there. Who might you be?" The vampiress asked, continuing to act as the ambassador of the group.

"Well, I might be Phantasma Phantom...because I am. Tee hee hee hee," The giggly ghost answered.

"Nice to meet you, Phantasma," Zanya said, holding a hand out to her.

"Please, call me Phanty," The chipper spirit responded, shaking Zanya's hand.

* * *

"So, Elsa was always really tall?" The tomboy twin asked, laying on her belly on her bed as she listened to Zanya's story.

"Yeah, Since she was built, like her father, she doesn't really grow like most of us," The undead young lady told her. "The body she has is the body she'll keep until she becomes an adult. From what she told me, her parents would have a new body made for her when that happens."

"Fascinating. Is your body hindered from growth in a similar manner?" The genius toddler inquired, notebook in hand.

"Not really. I mean, I'm not growing any taller anytime soon, but Mom told me that I should still mature, as she put it," Zanya explained. "But I digress. Let's see, where was I…? Oh yes. At first, it seemed like Elsa and Phanty were going to fit in nicely. They were both really nice, and Phanty was always a lot of fun to be around. However...remember what I said about Sibella needing to be the center of attention? Well, that was especially true for spellcrafting class, where she was used to being the best."

"I can kinda see that," The most athletic of the sisters said, seated on Lola's tea table to listen to the story..

"Now, that hadn't changed, necessarily. She was still the top of the class overall, but one of the new students was starting to show promise. After a certain magic class, Sibella started being noticeably colder toward Phantasma. I wasn't there, so I couldn't tell you exactly what happened, but Elsa was able to give me a summary of what transpired later…"

* * *

"Alright, children. For this class, we're going to be trying something a little more complicated," Miss Grimwood told the spellcrafting class, which consisted of Sibella, Elsa and Phanty. (Moria was doing her own independent studies by this point.) Sibella, as usual, was giving the headmistress her undivided attention. "Levitation. Unlike most forms of magic, it requires only two things: line of sight and, more importantly, focus." She gestured toward a book across the room from her. With a flick of her finger, the tome lifted into the air and floated across the room to her. "Looks and sounds simple, doesn't it?"

"Magic rarely ever is that simple," Sibella spoke up.

"Quite right, Sibella. The will required to move an object can vary with the size and weight of the object, your magical experience and power, and external factors, such as wind and gravity. For a witch with my experience, for example, a book would be trivial to levitate. In contrast, if I were to, say, try and lift the school, I doubt I could even move it." Phanty giggled a little at that comment, which made the daughter of Dracula frown at her, but Abigail didn't seem bothered. In fact, she smiled warmly at the upbeat spirit. "Now then, to utilize this spell, focus your eyes on a specific item, then concentrate. Will the item to lift, using your arm and fingers to guide it."

"Is the guiding hand required, Miss Grimwood?" Elsa asked, sounding curious.

"Not necessarily, but without it, who knows where the object could end up," The motherly witch answered. "I would recommend using your hand until you've become more experienced using magic. With that out of the way, who would like to go first?"

"Me!" Sibella and Phanty both said at the same time, raising their hands.

"Alright, Sibella. You can try first," The mystical headmistress said as she conjured four objects onto the floor in front of her: a small super ball, a kickball, a bowling ball, and an iron ball and chain. "Choose an object you feel comfortable lifting via magic, focus on it, and will it into the air." The vampiress immediately turned her attention to the ball and chain. She squinted her eyes as she pointed a finger at the metal orb and put all her will into getting it to rise. It took some significant effort, causing her to sweat. The heavy iron ball shook a bit, rattling it's chain, then started to lift into the air.

"N….Nothing to it," The daughter of Dracula said confidently, despite the strain in her voice, before she put the ball back down with a thunk.

"Well done, Sibella, though I would recommend not overdoing it. Remember, magic has a cost," Miss Grimwood cautioned her.

"I'm fine, Miss Grimwood...but I'll be more careful in the future," The purple haired vampiress responded as she caught her breath.

"Good. Now, who's next?" Elsa had stepped up to take the next turn, Phanty deciding to be patient. The reanimated young girl opted to start small, pointing at the kickball. It didn't take much effort for Elsa to lift it, but still being inexperienced with magic, she couldn't maintain the lift and the ball fell to the ground on it's own. "Good work, Elsa. Keep practicing and your magical endurance will improve."

"Yes, Miss Grimwood," The daughter of Frankenteen replied, her classmates giving her a small round of applause. Finally, it was Phanty's turn. She floated to where her friend once stood and focused on the bowling ball. She casually pointed a finger at it and, as she raised her finger, so raised the heavy sphere. Sibella's mouth hung open as the young ghost floated the bowling ball around like it was a balloon. She didn't even look to be concentrating too hard on it either. After about a minute, she set the ball right back into place, not having broken a sweat.

"Very good, Phantasma," Miss Grimwood complimented her with a smile, while Elsa clapped for her. "Have you used this spell before?"

"No, Miss Grimwood, but making things float comes naturally to a ghost," Phanty replied.

"That was...a good try, Phantasma," The young vampiress said in a backhanded manner. "But I had moved the heaviest object of all."

"Now now, Sibella. This isn't a competition," The motherly witch said. However, Phanty was already pointing toward the ball and Chain. This one took more effort, naturally, but soon the ball was lifted. The daughter of Dracula's jaw nearly hit the ground as it levitated higher than she had managed. She couldn't hold it for as long as the bowling ball, so she quickly let it back down.

"Very impressive, Phanty," Elsa told her, the ghost beaming at her. Sibella, however, was leering at her back.

"**Now, Phanty was over optimistic when she was younger, but she wasn't oblivious. She could see the change in Sibella's attitude: Giving her the cold shoulder and the silent treatment. As you can imagine, it really hurt her feelings. After a couple days of it, she decided to talk with her about it…"**

"Sibella," The young poltergeist called out as she floated over to the vampiress and Moria in the entry hall. They had just come in from outside, the two having just studied the herbs in Miss Grimwood's garden. Zanya was seated in one of the few chairs by the stairs that wasn't rigged to restrain the one sitting in it, watching from behind her literature textbook. Sibella glanced over her shoulder for a moment, then coldly turned away from the spectral lass. Phantasma wasn't about to give up on this, however, so she simply flew around in front of her. "Sibella, can we talk a moment?"

"No," She replied harshly, turning sharply to not look at her.

"Please?" Phanty requested, floating around to get in her sight again. "It's really important." Once more, the young vampiress shifted her attention away from the ghost girl, only for her to fly into her line of sight again. "Sibella, I noticed you seem really upset with me," The daughter of the Phantom continued, realizing Sibella wasn't about to engage with this conversation. "I also noticed you've changed...you started out so nice, but now...you don't seem to want to even look at me. Did I do something really bad to you? Did I hurt you in some way? Because, if I did, I'm-"

"Did you do something bad? Did you do something bad!?" The lavender skin young lady shouted, making Moria flinch and Zanya drop her book from the startle. "How can you even ask that!?"

"Be...cause I don't recall doing anything to hurt you? At least not on purpose?" The ghost gal replied, looking confused.

"You don't recall...you tried to take my place as the top of Miss Grimwood's spellcrafting class!" She yelled right into the perplexed phantom's face. Phanty was stunned for a moment as she just looked at the fuming vampiress with a befuddled look. Moria just sighed and rolled her eyes a little, while Zanya facepalmed.

"Good grief…" The zombie girl muttered under her breath.

"Say...what?" Phanty inquired, not certain she heard her correctly.

"You heard me! I was the greatest student in the class before you came along!" Sibella started to rant.

"...are you serious?" The see through girl asked, the only response she received being a death glare from the angry girl before her. Then, Phantasma started laughing.

"Oh no, don't laugh…" Moria groaned, looking over at Sibella with worry, the vampiress going red in the face from anger.

"Hahahaha! That's the silliest thing I ever heard!" Phantasma exclaimed. "Just because I happen to be good at levitating? You've got at least a year of magic experience on me. No way I can-WHOA!" Her train of thought was interrupted by a magic missile being hurled at her head, forcing her to duck. "Whoa, Sibella! There's no need for-"

"Arcanis!" The vampiress yelled out, a wave of pure magic bursting from her hand, knocking the ghost girl back and through a wall. She phased back through a second later, looking quite irked herself.

"That was uncalled for!"

"Hey! Stop it!" Zanya shouted, but to no avail. More magical projectiles flew from Sibella's hands, right at the cool blue spirit. Phanty was forced to fly away from them, the missiles simply fading upon contact with the wall (Miss Grimwood having enchanted the walls to be highly resistant to magic a LONG time ago). "Sibella, you know Miss Grimwood-!" The pale green child was interrupted when a frantic phantom accidentally flew past behind her, and one of Sibella's magic missiles struck her right in the chest. Oddly, she didn't even feel it. In fact, the spell simply dissipated upon contact with her. "...what the?"

* * *

"Wait...the spell just...went away when it touched you?" The fashionable teen asked in confusion.

"Basically," Zanya confirmed. "Turns out, the substance that brought me back to life was responsible. Even to this day, we aren't sure why (research is still ongoing), but it has an adverse effect on magic. It keeps me from using it, but it also makes me borderline immune to it as well."

"Wow. I guess that's a fair enough tradeoff for not having magic," Lori commented, leaning against the corner of the room nearest to Lola's pageant trophy shelves.

"Before I continue, let me preface by saying this: As you can imagine, Miss Grimwood forbids fighting on school grounds," The zombie girl explained, suddenly sounding somewhat serious. "Not out of the ordinary. All schools do. However, Miss Grimwood EXPRESSLY forbids magical duels as well."

"What's so different about magic dueling that makes her really not like it?" The youngest of the older sisters asked, looking confused.

"Because when young casters duel, especially when tempers are high, it's likely they could end up mixing magics. Spellcasting can be risky enough when you don't have a lot of experience with it, but when you mix magics, it's like haphazardly mixing unknown chemicals...it could have unpredictable, tragic, or even cataclysmic results…" The sisters all looked at each other in concern, with Luan gulping in fear before Zanya continued. "Thankfully, the results weren't cataclysmic this time…"

* * *

The battle between Sibella and Phantasma was short, but it was eventful; especially when Phanty was forced to fight back with what little magic she knew. She used the levitation spell to use whatever was at hand as a shield while she planned her counter attack. The giggly ghost's eyes went all over the room when she spotted the rug right under her opponent's feet. She smirked a bit and quickly swiped her hand at it, pulling the throw rug right out from under her. Sibella was knocked onto her back, giving Phantasma the opening to soar over. What she wanted to do was pin her and talk to her. However, the vampiress was still in full fight mode. "Arcanis!" She screamed, pointing both hands at Phanty.

"Eep! Arcanis!" Phanty squeaked in shock, imitating Sibella's movements. She had no idea what she cast, but it seemed to work for her opponent. Pure magic surged from both of them, clashing in mid air. One magical surge purple, one ice blue.

"Oh no…" Moria looked very alarmed before diving as Zanya (who was kind of out of it after her recent discovery). "Get down!"

"Ack! Moria, what was that for?" The young zombie asked. She got her answer after a few seconds. A bright orb of light was starting to form between the two.

"Sibella? What's that?" Phantasma asked, noticing the excessive light between them.

"What is...oh…" Sibella's anger faded into fright as she realized what was happening. The exploded, sending Phanty to the ground and sending rays of arcane energy in all directions. The beams hitting the walls simple fizzled, while Moria had conjured a shield to protect her and Zanya. One day, however, was pointed at the front door, and it was at that point a young werewolf kicked the doors open.

"Helloooooo Grimwood!" The little werewolf exclaimed excitedly. "Winnie the Werewolf is heeeeOOOOOOOOOOOOOWL!" Her intro was interrupted as she was hit right between the eyes. She howled loudly as her whole body started to glow, and then grow.

"Uh oh," Sibella and Phanty said together as Winnie's head reached the overhang, which crumbled as she grew more and more. By the time she stopped, she was the size of the school. The young lycan blinked, looking down at her feet, then back up at the roof of the school. She was confused at first, but her confusion soon gave way to glee and excitement as a smile came to her face.

"Best. First day of school. EVER!" Winnie cheered, raising her arms up as if in victory. Her exclamation got the attention of not only Miss Grimwood, but the Calloway Cadets and Colonel next door as well. The head mistress leaned out of the window and was surprised to see the giant sized werewolf girl before her, while the humans in the military academy next door could only stare in shock and horror. "Oh, hello. Are you Miss Grimwood?" The energetic werewolf asked, leaning in for a closer look at her.

"Hello yourself, young lady. I am, indeed, Miss Grimwood. You must be Winnie," She said, with a soft smile

"You got it, ma'am."

"Hmmm. I didn't expect you to be a giant, Miss Werewolf."

"Well, I didn't really expect to get made into a giant today either. Funny how life works, isn't it?" Winnie inquired with a soft chuckle.

"What exactly happened to lead you to this occurrence, Winnie?" Miss Grimwood asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Beats me," The fur bearing girl shrugged. "I just opened the doors and got hit in the kisser by some kind of light. When I could see again, I was as big as a house." The middle aged witch nodly slightly before looking down at the grounds, where Sibella and Phanty were looking up at the gargantuan werewolf, both of them beside themselves with worry.

"Girls, you wouldn't happen to know anything about this, would you?" Abigail asked, her tone neutral in spite of her suspicions. The ghost and vampiress looked up at her, sweating bullets before they looked at each other Then, they did what any kid in their position would do…

"She did it!" They shouted together, pointing to one another.

* * *

"Well, technically, they weren't lying," Lola reasoned with a shrug of her shoulders. "They did both do it."

"Miss Grimwood thought the same thing. That's why she punished both of them," Zanya told them all. "She didn't raise her voice when she scolded them though. It was more a 'I'm not mad. Just very disappointed' kind of telling off, which Sibella admitted later kind of made it worse."

"I suspect, given what you just informed us of earlier, Miss Grimwood had punished them most harshly for this," Lisa theorized, nibbling on her pencil's eraser.

"Oh yes. In addition to having to write an essay on why mixing magic is dangerous (a daunting task at that age), but they were given a week worth of detention, and extra homework during that time."

"That doesn't really seem fair to me...at least, not to Phanty. I mean, she didn't start it," Lynn voiced her objection.

"Maybe not, but she knew the rule against dueling with magic. Even if it was self defense, it sounds like it could have gotten really dangerous…" Lori responded.

"What happened to Winnie after that?" The ditziest of the sisters inquired. "Was she stuck as a giant forever?" All of her sisters, older and younger, just slowly looked at her after she had asked that question.

"Leni...you've literally met Winnie. Did she look like a giant then?"

"Not that she wouldn't have been fine with that if she could," Zanya interjected before an argument could break out. "Turns out, Winnie loved the opportunity to be the big girl on campus. She turned down Miss Grimwood's offer to change her back, but the spell wore off later in the day anyway. Still, she enjoyed her gargantuan size while she could."

"I know I would," Lana piped up with a big grin. "If it were me, I would wade across the ocean, looking for Monster Island, and hang with Godzilla for the day."

"What is it with you and Godzilla?" Her twin asked, looking somewhat annoyed.

"Giant. Really Cool. Reptile. Enough said," She responded simply.

"...ok, in hindsight, that was a silly question…"

"I find it kinda hard to believe that Sibella could have been so petty…" The oldest of the sisters said, wanting to get things back on track. "Getting so upset just because Phanty could levitate things a little better than she could."

"Yeah…" Luna agreed, but a warm smile returned to her face a moment later. "...but it also shows just how far she came. She went from kind of a brat to the awesome vampire we all know today."

"That's true," The family fashionista nodded in agreement. "But I'm sure it was a long road. Especially making up to Phanty after that."

"Not as long a road as you may think," The undead child informed him, which got their attention. "In fact, by the time their first detention had ended, the two had made up and were close friends once more."

"Really? I thought there wasn't a ghost of a chance that would happen. Hahaha!" The prankster sister joked, though her family mostly ignored her jest.

"We thought the same thing, but Phantasma was never one to hold a grudge," Zanya continued. "As for Sibella, her mood shifted dramatically when she heard Phanty crying during that very detention. I've never seen her cry before, but Sibella described it as a really heartbreaking sight." Eight of the nine Loud siblings once more looked to one another. Apart from Lily (who was asleep at this point), they had all witnessed how the usually chipper phantom just cried her eyes out after the battle with Sigmund Lesrec several months prior. It was a sight most of them hoped they'd never have to see again. "She did try and get Phanty off by admitting to the whole thing to Miss Grimwood the next day, but she wouldn't budge. Shows you just how serious she is about fighting with magic on school property. Nevertheless, Phantasma appreciated the attempt, and the two have been the best of friends from that point on." The ghoul girl looked around at her audience and took note of the sleeping baby. "And I think that's a good stopping point this time."

"Aww...so soon?" The twins whined in stereo.

"Sorry you two, but it is getting late, and we all have school tomorrow."

"Zanya's right, everyone," The eldest of the children said as she moved from her corner and picked up Lily. "Most of us are up way past our bedtime." Lola and Lana groaned in disapproval, and Lisa looked quite perturbed as well, but that sounded like it was the final word on the matter.

"Don't worry. I promise I'll tell you more stories next time," She told the younger of the sisters. "And I will explain why I wasn't present at school during the Revolta incident then too, Lisa."

"Please refrain from reading my mind…" The little genius said in a deadpan manner, which just made most of her sisters laugh harder than they usually would. She wouldn't normally even joke about that, as she didn't believe in such mental powers. However, after witnessing them in action during Lincoln and M-149's battle with the martians a short time ago, she decided better safe than sorry. And with that, the collective of Loud children departed Lola and Lana's bedroom, closely followed by the girl from Grimwood's. As much as the twins had protested the end of story time, they really were feeling tired, so they simply made themselves comfortable and drifted off into a good night's sleep.


	14. Chapter 14: Snake in the tub

_AN: Had a slight delay in finishing this chapter. Lost access to the internet for nearly a week, which slowed down progress with writing as well as keeping it from getting posted. However, all's well now, so here it is. Before we get into it, though, just wanna answer a few questions from Ironchef13:_

_1: The next chapter of Zanya's Tales will probably include Tanis, but it will mostly focus on explaining why she wasn't there for the Revolta incident._

_2: Yes, I do plan on doing more date chapters. Was going to do them all later, but after I was told about the passing of Phanty's voice actor, I decided to do that one then and there.  
_

_3: I'm doing well enough, thank you for your concern. As for Lincoln taking the girls to Dairy Land, I will consider it, but at the moment, I can't really think of what to have happen there._

_4: Hmmm. Not really a subplot, but it could be a cute addition for the Christmas themed chapters I have planned for later down the road. Thanks_

* * *

Snake in the tub

It was that time of year again; the time for final exams. No matter the grade, no matter the school, this was always a stressful time for all students, and Grimwood's School was no exception. With only a week plus a few days before the start of finals, it was crunch time for studying. Everyone had their own studying strategies, of course. The younger students helped one another in their little study group, aiding one another with their strengths while seeking help for their weakest subjects. Sibella, Elsa and Phanty had a similar system, the three of them studying together in the science classroom. Some, however, opted to study by themselves. Silas hit the books as he jogged around the school while carrying a basket with all his needed textbooks on his back, saying that getting the blood pumping like that helped him concentrate. Winnie shared that sentiment, as she could be found up in the gym tower, doing sit ups as she read passages from her spellcrafting book. Ignatius, Suki and Avalina had much calmer, quieter methods, finding quiet (and in the vampire lad's case, dark) parts of the house to read in peace. Lincoln could be found on Wendalyn's web this day, studying with the arachnotaur girl in the basement. He had promised to help her with potions and alchemy class, which she had been having a lot of trouble with as of late. The one son was laying on his back almost like he was laying on a hammock, a throw pillow under his head, while Wendy was seated in half spider form beside him. "Alright, Wendy. A mixture of oil of muckworms with powdered salamander horn…"

"...Is a very bad idea," Wendalyn replied, as if reciting from memory. "While the powdered horn wouldn't ignite the oil, heating it at all would cause it to superheat and cause the flask holding it to explode."

"Mmhmmm. Very good," The white haired boy said, turning to a new page. "What is the proper ratio of venom to morning dew when creating an antidote?" The spider girl paused for a moment, looking up toward the ceiling.

"Uh...three parts dew to one part venom?"

"That's right," She smiled broadly as she made a note of that in her notebook, using a quill pen. He wasn't sure why she wasn't using an ink pen or a pencil, but figured it was a preference. "And can you tell me why that's important?"

"Because if you use too much venom, you risk poisoning the drinker even worse, while too much dew will make the antidote useless."

"Precisely," He flipped a little further ahead in the book. "What kind of potion will you get if you combine twelve manowar tentacles, fifty milileters of caustic snail slime, four drops of salt water, and a tablespoon of sulfur?"

"Uh...er…" Her eyes darted around the darkened basement as she tried to find the answer in her mind. It sounded familiar, but she couldn't figure out why. "I...don't know."

"That combination creates a potion of dreamless slumber, which, according to the book, will ensure a dreamless sleep for anyone who inhales the fumes right before they sleep," Lincoln informed her. He looked up at her and noticed she looked kind of down that she missed that one. "Don't feel so bad, Wendalyn. It's not easy to name the potion just from the ingredients, especially the more ingredients there are. Even Elsa and Tanis have trouble with that. Besides, you're doing great. Only one question missed." With that bit of encouragement, the arachnotaur gave him a small smile.

"Thank you, Lincoln. And thanks again for helping me study," She said.

"Glad to be of help. It's a good thing we got a free period for extra study while Miss Grimwood is interviewing new teachers," Lincoln commented as he continued to flip through the book.

"I wonder how she's doing…"

* * *

Sometime earlier, Abigail was in her office, looking over a resume in her hand. She was alone in her office, with her crystal ball in front of her. Inside said sphere was the head and neck of a pale woman with long red hair that looked like it was soaking wet. She had a kind of glassy look in her eyes as she seemed to wait for Miss Grimwood to speak. The headmistress, in turn, looked like she was in an intense mental debate. After a few minutes, she finally spoke. "Well, Miss Rusalka…"

"Please, Miss Grimwood...call me Mariecia," The woman said in a hauntingly beautiful voice.

"As you wish, Mariecia...according to your resume, you seem well versed in monster history, and you have a little teaching experience. However, there are a few concerns I have…"

"I suppose the first of which being my need to remain in water?"

"Quite right," Miss Grimwood responded with a soft nod. "Now, we do have a moat, which would be fine for classes, but making you live out the moat...it doesn't feel right to me."

"I've experienced worse, Miss Grimwood," The rusalka replied. "Particularly through harsh winters."

"As you say, but I would prefer to have a place inside where you can rest, work, or even hold classes in times of inclement weather. There could be ways around that, however. My second problem, however, may prove more an issue: the effect rusalki have on males."

"Why is this a problem? Yours is a school for girl ghouls, is it not?"

"I'm afraid it isn't anymore. Grimwood's has become a co-ed school, with male students joining the girls and a male teacher."

"Oh...oh dear. I was unaware of that…" Mariecia said, looking somewhat downcast. "You're right...that would pose a problem."

"It would indeed...but I'm not saying no outright yet," Abigail told her as she set the resume down and smiling softly. "If we can find a way around that effect, we would be able to work something out. Professor Van Ghoul and I will look into it, and I suggest you do the same. In the meantime, I will keep your resume on file and give you a call back if we figure something out."

"Thank you, Miss Grimwood. I will call if I can discover something on my end."

* * *

"...and so, as you can see, Miss Grimwood…" A two headed ogre, each head with one eye, stated as he paced back and forth in front of her desk. He was wearing a tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows, fine khaki pants, but not shoes. Each eye in his two heads had a monocle, and he was surprisingly well spoken. "...between holding a PHD in math and experience teaching in one of the finest monster academies in Transylvania and many others, I clearly have more than enough skill to handle teaching at your fine school. Not to mention an intelligent witch like you can see the advantage of hiring a two headed teacher; capable of giving two students individual attention at one, able to watch the class and the board at the same time, can grade double the amount of papers…"

"Quite so, Mr Hezroth," Miss Grimwood interjected, having sat through nearly ten minutes of his pitch for his employment. "Your resume is impressive, no doubt, and you are correct about many points of hiring a two headed teacher."

"Indeed. So why don't we simply skip this formality and-"

"Because I'd like to ask your experience," She cut him off before he could get started again. "You have a lot of schools listed here, but you never stayed at any of them, save for the University of Transylvania, for very long. Is there a particular reason you didn't remain at any of these schools?" She looked up with a raised eyebrow, the other eyebrow flying right up as she noticed the scowl on his faces.

"Because they were a bunch of liberal weaklings!" He replied furiously, slamming one of his ham sized fists on the desk, causing it to bounce off the ground and sending all the contents on it everywhere. "Too weak kneed and sissified to explore proper discipline of problem students, unlike in the old days."

"Proper...discipline?" She inquired with a certain (and increasing) trepidation.

"Quite. It's all detentions, writing lines, and parental conferences…" The left head said in a mocking tone, while the right head pretended to be sick. "Feh! Pure rubbish that does nothing. Threaten a student with detention, it has no weight! But pull out the old hickory stick…" He reached behind his back and revealed a stiff wooden rod to her. "...and they'll straighten up and fly right after a few good lashings." Miss Grimwood's eyes widened at the sight of the stick before she looked up at the two headed giant-kin as if he was out of his mind.

"Mr Hezroth, are you suggesting you plan to beat my students with that hickory stick!?" The motherly witch asked in outrage.

"Only if they act out, and even then, it isn't my go to method of discipline…"

"I should hope not!"

"...I generally find hanging them from a high window works quite well also, or locking them in a cage in the corner, or perhaps suspending them by their thumbs in the dungeon for a fashion...you do have a dungeon, right?" The headmistress' mouth just hung open in disbelief before closing slowly, a fact the ogre seemed to miss entirely.

"...I think we're done here, sir…" She told him with barely disguised contempt.

"I quite agree. Everything that needs to be said has been said," The twin headed teaching hopeful turned to the door, with his right head still looking back at her as he departed. "Just let me know when you want me to start," he called as he exited her office. Her eye twitched a bit as she picked up his resume and burned it to ash in her hands.

"When Hell freezes over…" She growled under her breath.

* * *

The third 'applicant' to arrive that day was probably the strangest Miss Grimwood had seen all day. He looked nothing like a teacher: a muscular man in a black muscle shirt and blue jeans, with sunglasses on inside and tall blond hair so coated in hair product it looked solid. He just sat in the chair in front of her desk in a relaxed manner, his right arm draped over the back as he looked at her and she looked back at him with confusion. One of his eyebrows appeared from behind his sunglasses. "This...isn't the dating agency, is it?" He asked, his voice a dead ringer for Elvis'.

"No, young man. I fear you have the wrong address." She told him, giving him a polite smile.

"Aw man…" He groaned, shaking his head as he looked at his shoes. However, when he looked back up, he suddenly leaned forward, his left arm on her desk as he grinned in what he thought was a charming manner and asked in a smooth tone. "Well, why don't we make it the right address?" Abigail just blinked at him, but her smile didn't falter.

"I think I can help you out with that, good sir," She told him sweetly before she snapped her fingers. In a puff of smoke, the man disappeared from sight.

"...not quite what I meant, but whatever," The odd man's voice rang out as the smoke faded. Miss Grimwood simply shook her head before she laughed softly.

"Not much help on the hiring front...but it was amusing if nothing else."

* * *

"...well, I'm sure she's doing fine," Wendalyn said. "I hope she finds someone soon, though."

"Me too," Lincoln agreed. "Because, between you and me...I'm kind of worried about her." The arachnotaur girl looked at him with surprise and confusion when she heard that, so he elaborated, "I mean, with so many students to be responsible for, and being involved with practically every class...even with Professor Van Ghoul helping, I think it's starting to take a toll on her." He then followed up by thinking to himself, 'Not to mention Sigmund's attack and the Revolta Incident plaguing her…'

"Hmmm. I guess that would be a lot of stress on her...but I'm sure she'll be alright," The raven haired spider girl said with a light smile. They continued their study session for another twenty minutes before Wendy closed her notebook. "And speaking of stress, I think that's enough of that for now. Let's take a little break."

"Sounds good to me," Lincoln said as he set the textbook aside. "What should we do to pass the-" He got the answer to his question before he could finish it when he looked up at her. She was grinning at him, waving the feather pen teasingly in front of him. He got the message instantly. "I really should have seen that coming," He said to the fourth wall as Wendalyn pulled his shirt up enough so she could tickle his stomach with the feather, making him laugh almost instantly.

* * *

Later that evening…

The students of Grimwood's school had just emerged from the science class, looking somewhat drained and, in Elsa, Milly and Sibella's case, irritated. Miss Grimwood had convinced M Female Prime to teach a few of the science classes leading up to their finals. While it was informative, it was also very long winded and peppered with some back handed comments about Earth intelligence. It was especially irksome to Elsa, who thought of herself as being quite intelligent. She could be heard ranting quietly to Lucy and Ignatius as the class dispersed. Meanwhile, Avalina was slithering off by herself, holding her forehead as if she had a headache. Between all the studying, reviews in all the previous classes, and the frustration of M Female Prime's class, she was in serious need of some relaxation. She needed a nice hot bubble bath. She came to a stop in front of the door of one of the bathrooms, looking at a sheet of paper hanging beside it. When the student roster expanded, the kids and teens (particularly Lincoln and Lucy) all suspected that may cause some scheduling issues with the bathrooms. Putting all their heads together, they came up with a shower/bath schedule for each washroom, tacking the papers outside of each. She looked at the paper and noticed her turn was in about two hours, shortly before lights out.

'Good. Good,' She thought to herself. 'A relaxing bath would definitely help me sleep.' She smiled lightly at the idea. 'And I shouldn't get disturbed either with this schedule.' The lamia glanced further down the list and spotted Lincoln's name at the bottom of the list, the last person to get a shower that evening. 'A good thing too...I would especially hate to have that human see me.' She shuddered for a moment at the thought, blushing lightly. '...though I suspect Miss Grimwood would really ream him out if he did.' She mused as she started to slither away, but then paused. She considered that notion again and smirked. 'Hmmm. In fact, if she thought he were spying...that may be enough to get him expelled.' She stroked her own hair for a bit as she thought this over, grinning even more, only for the grin to disappear in a flash. '...but...could I really let him barge in on me in the bath for the sake of getting him removed from school?...well, I did put Silas at risk before...I suppose I should do my own dirty work. It will be humiliating, but hopefully worth it.' She quickly glided across the floor, heading back to her own room.

* * *

She returned moments later with a sheet of paper in her hand, stopping in front of the bathroom schedule. She looked between the blank sheet on her hand and the one on the wall a few times before she waved her hand in front of the schedule. "Millor istaran…" She chanted quietly before she ran her fingers along the blank sheet. "...kookeli formida exchen aville." Words and letters appeared on the paper, matching the handwriting on the schedule. As soon as it was finished, she swirled her finger around on the list, swapping her name with Lincoln's before she swapped the schedules. Now she just needed to get Lincoln to see it. As luck would have it, the white haired boy was coming down the hallway right there, carrying a few textbooks he got from the library. This was her chance. She quickly hid the original shower list and acted casual as he approached her. He stopped right next to her, a frown appearing on his face as he noticed her.

"Laverns…" He said curtly, still trying to be polite.

"Loud…" She replied sourly, not looking at him. "...do you happen to remember which chapters Professor Van Ghoul told us to review for alchemy class…?"

"Chapters 4 to 8," The one son replied, his eyes surveying the area to find something other than the lamia to look at. His vision fell upon the list on the wall, Lincoln perusing it to keep his sight off of her.

"...I thought as much," She replied before she turned and slowly started to leave.

"...you're welcome," He grumbled. It was then he took notice of the fact that his name was next on the list, in less than two hours. "Huh? I thought my turn was later…" He commented as he scratched his head in confusion, Ava listening as she purposely lollygagged so she could make sure he took the bait. "Then again, I've been so busy with studying and the like, I'm surprised I haven't forgotten my own head." The serpent girl grinned when she heard that, pretending to pause to look over a painting as she listened to his departing footsteps. Once he was out of sight, she slithered back to the bathroom door and switched her forged schedule with the original.

"Perfect. Now I just need to take my bath at my appointed time and let things take their course," She said to herself as she burned her magically crafted fake in her hand. She snickered and started to leave, but paused when she heard a clattering in the vents. She looked up for a moment, then shrugged. "Mice...or rats...maybe both," She decided in a carefree manner, before she headed for her room. She had preparations to make after all.

* * *

About an hour and fifty minutes later, the scheming serpent teen was running herself a nice hot bath in a flowing green bathrobe, snickering at the skulduggery afoot. 'For a few seconds of fleeting embarrassment, that little vermin will be kicked out of Grimwood's,' She thought to herself as she watched the tub fill up. 'Then, I can work on getting his sister the boot. That will no doubt be more difficult..but one slither at a time. Once the tub was filled, the lamia pulled a bright blue bath bomb from her robe pocket and dropped it in. While she waited for the water to bubble, she started hearing a little voice in the back of her head. '...is all this really worth it, Ava?'

"What do you mean?" She asked herself out loud, turning to look into the cracked mirror over the sink.

"I mean...that foolish act of pretending to swing at his sister, sending Silas after him, this vindictiveness when he did nothing wrong. You said so yourself." Her mirror image responded, her hands on her hips.

"I can't stand humans and you know it," She argued, crossing her arms and frowning at her own reflection. "...though the Silas thing, I admit, was somewhat extreme." She added, looking toward the ground.

"Neither could he, but now he and Lincoln are good friends," The reflection informed her. "And what's more, he's a nice guy."

"He's not that nice…"

"He could have turned you over to Miss Grimwood for taking a swing at that baby, but he didn't, did he?" Mirror Avalina retorted with a slightly smug smirk. "Not only did he not tell her, he kept being civil to you even afterwards."

"Touche…" The true lamia mumbled, unable to look at her reflection for a second or two before she leered at the mirror with renewed vigor. "...but that means he's too nice, and you know you have to beware the ones who are too nice!"

"That's a weak counter and you know it," Her conscience manifesting as her reflection responded. "Besides, it's not just his being nice. He's kinda charming, has a pretty decent mind, and you gotta admit...he's got nice legs."

"Leave his legs out of this…" The lamia hissed, blushing deeply. She tried to look away from the mirror so her reflection couldn't see it.

"It's all up here, Ava," The duplicate informed her, tapping the side of her own head. "Just like me." The half snake girl was about to snap in response, but then she heard the floorboards outside creak.

'Crap! He's coming already!' Ava thought in a panic. She hastily tossed her robe aside and quickly got into the tub, making very sure she was as covered as possible with the bright blue bubbles. She glanced to the door, which she left open a little to make it seem like no one was in here and...nothing. She raised an eyebrow wondering what was taking him. 'He must have forgotten something…' She thought sourly. '...ah well. I can enjoy my bath for a little bit before he gets here." She nodded as a smile overtook her. The hot water, the bubbles, the perfumed aroma, all were doing wonders to soothe her jangled nerves. She rested her head on the edge of the tub and just sighed contentedly.

* * *

Ten minutes passed, and in Lincoln and Silas' room, the two of them were engaged in a very close fight on his MuscleFish computer game. The minotaur was pretty damn good at the game, and really gave the one son a run for his money. He hadn't had this much of a challenge since his gaming sessions with Ronnie Anne. 'Hmmm. Maybe I should challenge her the next time we hang out...it's been a while,' He thought to himself, just as his roommate finished off his character. "Dang it…" He groaned as their win/loss record was shown. Silas was just barely ahead of him, 31 wins to 29 losses.

"Haha. Gotcha again, lad, but it was close," The half bull teen told him with a bit of a smirk. The one son nodded as his eyes shifted to the clock by his bed. When he noticed the time, his eyes widened.

"Ah crud! Is that the time!?" He asked in concern as he suddenly dropped his controller. "I'm late for my turn at the shower!"

"Yeah? Ye better hurry, Lincoln, or you may lose yer turn," Silas said as he watched Lincoln rush around the room grabbing what he needed for his shower and rushing out the door in a blur. With his gaming buddy gone, Silas decided he'd run through the arcade mode of the game a couple times on the hardest difficulty. Meanwhile, Lincoln was full on sprinting toward the restroom, carrying a towel and a change of clothes in his arms.

"Lincoln, you goof…" He said to himself. "You really need to pay more attention to the time…" The Loud warlock looked ahead and noticed the door was still slightly open; a sign it wasn't in use. Good. He still had a chance. He quickly pushes the door open and drops his change of clothes next to the sink and tosses his towel onto the towel rack. He was in such a rush, he didn't notice the towel already there, nor Avalina. He did, however, notice the perfumey odor in the room. This struck him as odd. He turned to look at the tub and froze, his eyes as large as dinner plates. There was Avalina, only her head, neck and arms visible as she lounged about in the bubbly bath, looking like she was in a state of nirvana. So relaxed was she that she didn't even notice that he had arrived (something she neglected to factor into her plan). The white haired boy just kind of squeaked as he stood there, his brain somewhat crashing from panic, embarrassment, confusion, and a slight bit of indignation. The lamia heard the soft sound and turned lazily to look at him. Her eyes started on his legs, still clad in his usual outfit. She just smiled as she looked upward until she was looking into his stunned face. She just stared at him for what seemed like an eternity (though it was only a few seconds) when her own mind seemed to reboot and she remembered: the plan! Her relaxed smile snapped into a shocked look before she screamed, hastily covering herself under the thick cover of bubbles. Her shriek snapped Lincoln out of his daze, his whole face turning red as he covered his eyes.

"Gah! Sorrysorrysorry!" He rapid fire apologized, scampering back. In his haste, he ended up tripping and falling onto his back. Ava's screams had brought Sibella, Elsa, Winnie, Wendalyn, Miss Grimwood, and Mr Van Ghoul running to the scene.

"Lincoln? What's going on?" Elsa asked, being the first on the scene. The one son stammered a garbled response just as Avalina slithered out of the bathroom in her robe, a furious look on her face.

"I just caught this little human peeping on me!" She snapped, pointing a finger right at Lincoln.

"Lincoln?" The daughter of Dracula looked over at the middle Loud, who was still red in the face and finally had the nerve to look through his fingers. She raised an eyebrow before looking back to Ava. "Are you certain about that?"

"Positive!" Avalina responded. Winnie frowned lightly. This didn't sound like something Lincoln would do; a thought shared by her friends.

"N...now hold on," The human boy finally stammered out. "I was just coming to get a shower."

"A likely story…" The lamia said with a scoff. Winnie looked into the lavatory and noticed the second towel on the rack and Lincoln's change of clothes on the floor.

"I dunno, Ava. It sure looks like Linc was coming for a shower," The young lycan commented.

"I didn't even know she was in there. The door wasn't shut," Lincoln added, still somewhat shaken.

"That's a lie! I had shut the door!" Avalina retorted sharply.

"Enough!" Abigail said firmly, bringing all further discussion to a halt. "Better. Now, let's start from the beginning. Avalina, your side of the story, if you please."

"Yes, Miss Grimwood. I came to take a relaxing bath; the stress of finals and studying have hit us all hard, after all. While I was bathing, I heard the door open. I turned and there he was, standing there staring at me, and that's when I screamed," The lamia teen explained, trying her best not to smirk. Miss Grimwood nodded, then turned to look at Lincoln.

"Lincoln, if you would be so kind…?"

"O..Of course. I noticed I was running late to take my scheduled shower-" He started. Ava opened her mouth to cut him off, but Miss Grimwood raised a hand to silence her, beckoning the one son to continue. "-so I grabbed what I needed from my room and ran to the bathroom, hoping someone else wasn't already in there. I saw as I was approaching that the door wasn't shut, so I thought no one was in there. In hindsight, I probably should have checked, but I was in a rush and wasn't really thinking...I ran in, put down my change of clothes, tossed my towel on the rack...and then I noticed a strange smell in the room. A perfume-like smell."

"That was the first thing you noticed, Mr Loud?" Vincent asked with an inquisitive look.

"Strange as it sounds, yes. I wasn't really paying attention to much except getting to the shower. Anyway, when I looked at the tub, she was already there...I just froze up until she looked at me and screamed." The white haired boy was feeling pretty uneasy at this point. He could tell his friends believed him, but Miss Grimwood and Mr Van Ghoul were another story, and theirs was the opinion that mattered. Their faces were as expressionless as Lisa's until the headmistress next spoke.

"Well, it seems to me this was all a simple misunderstanding," She said, her calm, kind smile returning.

"Miss Grimwood, I must disagree," Ava interjected. "I can prove this was anything but a mistake. You see, Mr Loud claims it was his turn at the bath, but if you will turn your attention to the schedule…" She gestured toward the paper by the door. "...you will see that it says-"

"Lincoln Loud," Elsa said, pointing at the human lad's name on the sheet. The lamia blinked and turned quickly. Just as the reanimated teen said, Lincoln's name was there instead of hers, just like her forged schedule.

'That's impossible!' Avalina thought in horror. 'I burned that paper. I know I did.'

"You were saying, Miss Laverns?" Vincent inquired, breaking her out of her shock.

"Ahem...something seems rotten here," she said as she regained her composure. "However, I believe if we look at one of the other schedules, we can clear things right up. Follow me." She slithered through the hall as quickly as she could, headed for the next restroom.

"What do you think, Abigail?" Mr Van Ghoul inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"She does seem quite certain, Vincent. Come. Let us see where this goes," She replied, following after the lamia girl.

"...well, follow the leader, I suppose," Wendalyn commented as she and Sibella helped the one son to his feet, the group of students taking up the rear.

'Ok. Slight hiccup,' Avalina thought to herself as she moved with purpose toward the second bathroom. 'Not sure how that happened, but I can prove it with the next schedule...in fact, I could even claim he put that fake there to cover his own hide.' After about a minute, the half snake student slid to a stop in front of the second restroom. "As you can see by this copy of the schedule, it says-" She pointed toward the sheet of paper on the wall as she looked at it herself. "-ACK!" She gasped. That copy of the schedule also said Lincoln's name. 'But...I never changed this one…'

"Miss Laverns, the two schedules appear to match," Miss Grimwood said as she looked over the paper for a moment. "I believe that-" She never got to finish her thought, as the lamia was already desperately running toward the final bathroom.

"Well...here we go again," Winnie said with a shrug before Ava's fellow students chased after her. Miss Grimwood and Mr Van Ghoul, however, decided to take the faster route, the two of them teleporting to the third bathroom. They arrived well ahead of their students, giving them a chance to view the schedule for themselves.

"Lincoln Loud, once more," Miss Grimwood said with a sad shake of her head. "It must be the pressures of their final exams…" The seasoned warlock gave a simple 'hmm' in reply, brushing his mustache with a finger as he thought. It was at that time Ava arrived on the scene, only for her jaw to drop when she saw the list for herself.

"But...but...but…" She sputtered, at a complete loss for any other words.

"It appears it truly was just a mistake, Miss Laverns," The middle aged witch said, turning to the dumbfounded half snake gal with a calm smile. "However, it appears you were the one who made it," She continued, just as Lincoln and his friends arrived.

"Lincoln again. Looks like you were trying to swipe his shower time, Ava," Winnie commented with a frown.

"What! No!" Avalina responded defensively, waving her hands in panic. "I...I really thought it was my turn…" The look on the young werewolf's face was one of pure disbelief, while Sibella looked somewhat skeptical as well. Elsa, on the other hand, had a look of focused thought on her face.

"Actually, in Ava's defense…" The daughter of Frankenteen interjected, glancing upward with a hand on her chin. "...I could swear I remember Lincoln being the last to get a turn at the bathroom today." Everyone looked at Elsa in surprise, her words triggering a memory in Lincoln.

"You know...I actually thought the same thing until I saw the bathroom schedule earlier," The white haired boy admitted, somewhat confused himself by the idea.

"Wait...really?" His lycan friend asked him in bemusement.

"Yeah...but I just thought I remembered it wrong. Seems like we both made the same error."

"...looks like it," Ava admitted resentfully in defeat.

"Well, that settles that…" Vincent commented with a tone of finality.

"There is one thing bothering me, though…" The reanimated teen cut in. "...the door." Ava felt a shiver go down her spine when she heard Elsa bring that factoid up. "Avalina claims she closed it, but Lincoln claimed it was open."

"I promise you...I did close that door," The lamia teen said in an almost pleading voice. A more vindictive part of Lincoln was kind of pleased to see her squirming like this. Perhaps he could just let her try and talk her way out of this and possibly dig herself even deeper. He considered it; he was sorely tempted.

"...It's possible the door never closed properly," He said after a few seconds, in spite of his brain's protests. "It happens all the time back home; you shut the door, but it doesn't catch, so it slowly creeps open."

"Hmmm. Yes, that does make sense," Miss Grimwood agreed with a nod. "Our lovely school is quite old. It's possible a few door knobs and locks could do with replacing."

"Then it appears you both learned a lesson from this," Mr Van Ghoul said, first pointing to Avalina. "That you should learn to check if the door did close behind you-" He then turned to face the middle Loud. "-and you shouldn't assume an open door means no one is home. Both easy mistakes to make, of course, but mistakes with quite embarrassing consequences."

"Yes, Professor Van Ghoul," Lincoln and Avalina responded, the latter in a dull monotone, and the former turning to the lamia.

"Sorry about that, Avalina…" He told her. Bitter feelings or no, he owed her an apology (or so he believed).

"Sorry…" She answered, unable to look at him.

"There we go. Now that that's settled, off you go, children," The motherly witch said, gesturing for her students to run along before she and Vincent turned to return to their offices.

"...let me just grab my stuff and you can finish your bath, Avalina...I'll go to another bathroom to take my shower," Lincoln said before he turned to collect his change of clothes, Winnie, Wendy, Sibella and Elsa following him. "Well, that was thoroughly embarrassing…" He commented quietly, his cheeks somewhat red.

"At least it's over now, my dear Lincoln," The daughter of Dracula said softly while stroking his snow white hair. "And it all ended as well as could be expected."

"Better than I expected, actually...I thought my goose was cooked for a moment there…"

"Ah, I don't think Miss Grimwood or Mr Van Ghoul really thought you would have really peeped on anyone," Winnie said dismissively, which got a bit of an appreciative smile from her human friend. However, the werewolf couldn't pass up the chance to mess with him a little either. With a grin, the fur bearing Grimwood girl added, "Though, if you froze up just looking at her, imagine if it was Sibella you saw in the bath instead." The one son's face instantly glowed bright red at the notion, which made Winnie and Wendalyn laugh, and Sibella burst out giggling.

"Winnie!" He shouted, which gave her the signal to get out of dodge, laughing all the way.

"Tee hee. You'd probably be blushing for the rest of your life if you had," Sibella teased him, brushing her fingers along his very warm face. "Not that I'd complain. You look so precious when your cheeks are all red." The Loud Warlock chuckled bashfully as she kissed him on his cheek, which calmed him down but did little to stop his blushing.

* * *

Back with Avalina…

"Well, that was thoroughly embarrassing…" The human/snake hybrid girl groaned, face palming as her own face went crimson. "...absolutely nothing went right with this stupid plan." She sighed in frustration before she started on her way to the bathroom too. "...the only consolation from all this is the human didn't see anything...or at least I hope to Echidna he didn't…" She shuddered in disgust at the possibility. Within a few seconds of the lamia's departure, the vent cover nearest the third bathroom creaked open. The raven haired witch to be peeked out to make sure the coast was clear before she smiled lightly and slipped out of her hiding place.

"Perfect," Lucy said quietly to herself before she pulled a folded up piece of paper from her dress pocket. She opened it up and looked upon the original bathroom schedule, where her brother's name was the last one there. 'It took a long time to copy the handwriting, but it looks like it was worth it,' She thought with satisfaction before she put the paper back in her pocket and looked down the hall at Avalina's back. 'I don't know what your problem with my brother is, Avalina...but you mess with one Loud, you mess with all Louds…' She mentally monologued with a stern frown. Once the half snake gal was out of sight, Lucy returned to the vents with the intent of returning to her room after a job well done.

* * *

_AN: Before I end this story, I want to ask you all two questions_

_First: I plan to have some new teachers introduced sometime after the Bermuda Triangle story arc (which is coming soon). What kind of monsters would you like to see as a teacher?  
_

_Second: What are your least favorite cliches found in Loud House fanfics? And which cliches do you actually like/don't mind? (Ok, it's technically three questions). I'll give my own answer in the next chapter._


	15. Chapter 15: Lynn vs Zombies

_AN: I wanted to do this particular chapter earlier in the story, but I had to agree that the Zanya side of the story has been pretty drama laced, so I wanted to do a more lighthearted chapter or two first. _

_First off, thank you all for your answers to my question and your suggestions for new teachers and even a few students. I do have plans to include new students once I've done a time skip, but that's a couple chapters away. Anyway, now for me to answer my own question about my least favorite cliches, here's a few that weren't mentioned:_

_1\. It's more a cliche associated with No Such Luck stories, so it's kind of niche, but I've seen it in a few other stories too, and that's Evil Lynn. Now, Lynn is my least favorite of the sisters (least, but still a favorite), and she certainly does have a lot of traits that make her an ideal antagonist. However, I personally never saw her as evil. Thoughtless? Stubborn? Lacking empathy? Yes, but not outright evil. Granted, everyone is entitled to their own interpretations of the characters, but I just don't agree with the idea of Lynn being evil, especially irredeemably evil._

_2\. Good sisters/mean sisters. The idea that Leni, Luna, Lucy, Lana and Lily are the nice sisters and Lori, Luan, Lynn, Lola and Lisa are the mean sisters with regard to Lincoln. I get where it comes from; the show does seem to paint them that way fairly early on. However, all the sisters are capable of being nice and mean, just like Lincoln is. They're human, after all...at least, usually they are._

_3\. I don't so much have a problem with this, but it is used so often it is getting kind of old. Please don't hate me for this, but guardian Luna. Now, I have no problem with the idea of Lincoln and Luna as the closest siblings. It makes for some really adorable stories. I have no problem with Luna acting as his protector or even being a kind of honorary guardian to him. However, it's such a common thing that the idea is getting kind of stale to me. And it especially bugs me if Luna is his legal guardian (which just doesn't make sense to me). On a side note, are there many stories where some of the younger sisters see Lincoln as their guardian? Don't recall seeing many, if any, like that._

_Anyway, if any of you can think of other cliches that irk you, or someone else wants to throw their opinion into the ring, feel free to do so. And now, before we start the story, a few questions to answer:_

_Ironchef: Yes, Shaggy and Scooby are still around, but only Scrappy is teaching. They're just hanging around presently while I figure out what to do with them. Also, I did mention Rani's father seemed to have Tengu blood in him, but that was a passing mention and beyond that, you're right. I will strongly consider monsters from japanese or chinese mythology as one of the next teachers._

_Alexpv22: I know I answered this question in PMs, but I thought you did a pretty good job with the characters. Also, if any of you are interested, I definitely recommend checking out his Gal Pals stories (both the original and Day in the Life of the Gal Pals)._

_I think that's all out of me for the moment. Enjoy the chapter._

* * *

Lynn vs Zombies

In RWE's one computer lab, a single student sat, hard at work typing something on one of the ancient computers they had running in there. The student in question was Mitzy, wearing a smoky gray designer tank top and jeans, with a press badge attached to one of the shoulder straps of her shirt. The badge said 'Editor in Chief'. She had a bored and sour look on her face as she worked. As much as she loved being in charge of the school paper, needing to read every story to be put in the paper was boring as anything. However, she knew she had to be grateful to even have this position after the Malora fiasco. After her plan so spectacularly failed, Mitzy was quick to deny any association with the Lesrec girl. However, even with that and Jen's actively working against her, their reputations took a serious hit. Such a hit that she almost cost her her job. It took everything she had to remain editor, and even more to restore her nearly dead social life; and even then, there were a handful of students who still cast her some ugly looks.

"Damn it, Malora…" She grumbled as she remembered the last few months. "Your stupidity really made things difficult for me...you and that miserable zombie. If not for her, we still would have been the top of the heap here..." Mitzy rose from her seat to go get her bottle of water from the table by the window (as the lab teacher refused to let students keep liquids by the computers) while she continued her rant. "It's lucky for me I didn't go down with her...at least not all the way…" She took a deep swig of her water before she sighed again. " Should have ditched her with Jen when I had the chance...On the plus side though, Malora is in juvie, and I don't have to deal with her anymore." She finished her drink and simply tossed the plastic bottle aside. "Now if only I could get a chance to get even with that zombie girl…" She commented as she returned to her seat, her chin resting on one of her hands as she leaned forward on the desk. "Nothing serious, like what Malora tried...just some humiliation, confusion...something to make her life more difficult...but what?" She pondered this issue as she scrolled down to the last story to be included in tomorrow's school paper; the story about the soccer match between Royal Woods Elementary and Middle School.

"Well, this is exciting…" She muttered sarcastically as she started to make corrections to the article. "Older kids dominating younger kids in sports...seriously, what kind of-wait? Our school won?" Mitzy was absolutely shocked when she read this. Sure, it was by one point, but it was still a win. A win against Royal Woods Middle School. The team with Lynn Loud. Mitzy had never met her before, but she knew of her reputation; she was one of the greatest sports players in the school, if not the town. She continued to read on when she spotted another interesting part: a quick interview with Zanya after the match. She had been quoted as saying,

"It was a tough battle to be certain, but we managed to squeak by with skill, perseverance, and a little luck." And later, when she was asked about if she thought Lynn went easy on them because they were younger and the two were friends, she responded, "Definitely not. In the time I've gotten to know Lynn Loud, I know there is no way she would just let someone win."

"Well now...this is interesting," Mitzy said to herself as a grin started to spread across her face. "You know...I wonder what would happen if the sports champ Lynn Loud got word that someone was besmirching her good name by...oh I don't know...accusing her of throwing a game?" She started to giggle at the thought crossing her mind as she started to make a few adjustments to the article.

* * *

The next day, at the Loud House after school…

Lynn Loud was known for being the most active of the sisters. She could spend most of any day playing any/or all sports or exercising. However, today was a rare day for her. As much as she'd like to be constantly working out, she knew her body needed to rest in order for her muscles to grow properly. Therefore, today was her day of rest. Normally, on these kinds of days, she would be spending it in front of the tv. However, Lola laid claim to the television today, so she could watch the Miss USA pageant finals. She would play with some of her sisters or their zombie guest, but the only one who wasn't busy was Leni, and playing with her can be a lesson in frustration. "Gah...I'm so bored…" Lynn complained to the ceiling as she lay on her bed. "What I wouldn't give for something to do…" As if on cue, her phone rang. Curious, and a little surprised, she scooped up her cell and pressed the accept call button. "Talk to me."

"With pleasure," Came the voice of Kaspa from her phone.

"Oh, hey, Kas. It's been a while. How are ya doing?" Lynn said cheerfully, a smile appearing on her face.

"Hey Lynn," The gorgon girl responded with a giggle. "Yeah, school's been requiring a lot of focus lately. Finals week really bites…"

"Preaching the choir on that one, girlfriend," The powerful brunette replied, trying not to giggle at the thought of Kaspa possibly blushing when she said that. She wondered for a brief moment if Kaspa still had a crush on her, like she did during the Monster Marathon. "Still finding time to get some sports in though."

"Mmm hmmm. And...how much actual studying have you done?" Kaspa asked slyly.

"Never you mind," Lynn said sharply and defensively, getting a snicker from her snake-like friend. "New topic: got any plans for the summer?"

"Oh yes. My family and I are going to go backpacking through some of Europe," She answered with enthusiasm. "Starting from Greece and working our way up to Ukraine. From there, we'll figure out where else we have time to travel to."

"All on foot...er, tail? Wow, that's quite a marathon."

"It sure is, but the best way to see it all is to take paths less travelled."

"True enough, I guess." Lynn sat up on her bed and adjusted herself so she was facing Lucy's empty bed and coffin. "I don't really have any plans myself yet, but I'm a 'cross that bridge when I reach it' kinda gal. But one thing is certain: I'm going to be glad to have Linc and Lucy back home for summer."

"Oh yeah. You told me your little sister got accepted into Grimwood's as well," Kaspa said. "How has she been holding up there?"

"She's having an absolute blast, naturally," The sporty sister told her with a soft chuckle. "It's like her idea of paradise. But...I feel kinda lonely here without her and my bro."

"Lonely? You have so many sisters. How can you be lonely?"

"Yeah yeah...I know. There's a lot of us, so I'm not really alone, but the older sisters are usually busy with their own things, and the younger siblings can't really keep up with me. Not that Linc can either, but at least he tries. And as much fun as Zanya is to play with, it's not really the same, ya know?"

"Yeah, I think I get it."

"And as for Lucy, she was my roommate. With her gone to Grimwood's, it's just been too quiet in my room, ironically." The strongest of the Loud sisters sighed as she looked away from her spooky younger sibling's side of the room. "None of her scribbling down her poems, her mutterings to her vampire bust or her bat...I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I actually miss her non stop sighing too."

"Aww. Cheer up, Lynn. It'll just be a few more days, then you'll all be reunited for the summer holidays."

"Yeah, I know...but waiting isn't what I do best…" That answer got a soft laugh from her gorgon friend.

"You can do it. I know you can. If you can survive the Monster Marathon, you can survive anything."

"Heh heh. Yeah, I guess I can," Lynn responded, smiling a bit at her ego being stroked a little.

"How have you and Francisco been, by the way?" The teen with the enchanting eyes inquired.

"We've been doing great. Finals have put a bit of a damper on date plans, but once it's over, Franc and I are going to go paintballing to celebrate," Lynn told her, grinning eagerly.

"Paintballing?"

"It's a sport where two teams face off with air guns that shoot little paint pellets. It's pretty intense." Though Lynn couldn't see it, Kaspa shuddered in horror.

"Ugh...I don't think I could do that. I don't like guns…"

"Oh? Had a bad experience with them?"

"No. I just don't like hearing them." Lynn could sense the tension in her voice.

"So...are you seeing anyone?" She asked, hoping to steer the conversation away from that potentially uncomfortable topic.

"No, though not from lack of trying," Kaspa responded. "I thought I had managed to get into a serious relationship with this centaur boy, but it went sour when I caught him with a dryad."

"Yikes…"

"Yeah, but I'm not too upset now. The dryad turned on him when I confronted him, and I started dating her for a little while." Kaspa paused for a moment as Lynn laughed at the karmic justice. "That didn't last long, though. We didn't have anything in common."

"Bet it was pretty satisfying though."

"Oh yes," She said, the both of them sharing a laugh now. "But yeah, I'm still a single noodle."

"I'm sure you'll find the right one soon enough," The sports centered brunette told her with a slight smile.

"Thanks, Lynn," Kaspa responded, smiling herself. "Well, I should get back to studying. Give me a call when you're all done with your tests and we can chat a little longer than we could today."

"Sweet deal, Kas. Talk to you later, and good luck on your tests."

"You too, Lynnsanity. Ta ta." With that, the call ended, leaving the tough sports player with slightly higher spirits. It was then she noticed she had gotten a text from her friend and teammate, Margo.

"Wonder what she wants…" Lynn muttered as she opened the text app.

Margo: Lynn! You have to read this!

Attached to the message was a link to the RWE newspaper website. The sporty sister was a little confused by this, but shrugged and tapped the link anyway. It led right to the article about the soccer game they had against the younger school.

"Hey, it's about our game," Lynn said with a small smile. She slowly slid her finger up the screen, reading through the story quietly. Then, she reached the end of the story, where the interview with Zanya was.

"Really, it wasn't tough," Zanya was quoted as saying, which made the youngest of the teens blink, wondering if she really read that. "That surprises me, as this was Lynn Loud's team. She's like a sports superstar. Between you and me...I think she let us win." If Lynn was kind of confused before, she was utterly gobsmacked now. She could hardly believe it, but here it was, in black arial text.

'...I don't get it. Why would she say that? She knows I wouldn't do that…' Lynn thought, her temper starting to grow. She was both angry and hurt by this accusation. She tossed her phone aside, quickly jumping to her feet and storming out of her room. She ran to Lincoln's old room and kicked the door open...only to find it devoid of people. Zanya wasn't there. She growled and ran downstairs, headed for the kitchen next. No sign of her there either. Backyard. Still nothing. She had just reached the door leading to the garage when she decided to place her ear against the door in an attempt to save herself a little time. Inside, she heard the Grimwood exchange student humming to herself. Lynn's hand gripped tightly on the door knob, but she paused for a moment. '...she's still my friend...I should give her a chance to explain herself...' She took a deep breath, then she opened the door. Inside the garage, Zanya was sitting at Lana's workshop table, wearing an eyepiece as she painted a tiny person figurine, with a Star Journey starship model sitting on the table beside her. The hot headed athlete took another calming breath, which got the zombie girl's attention.

"Oh, hey, Lynn," She greeted her, pulling the eye piece from her eye with a smile.

"Hey...whatcha up to…?" Lynn asked, arms crossed and sounding somewhat sour.

"Just painting the crew for my Republic starship model," She answered, not quite picking up on her tone. "Not as easy as it looks."

"Mmmhmm. Speaking of easy...remember that soccer game we had a little while back?"

"Yeah, I remember, though I don't know what that has to do with easy. That game was anything but," Zanya answered.

"Is that so? So, you wouldn't say that match wasn't a challenge?" The short tempered teen asked, her anger rising.

"Why would I say that? Anyone could see that it was a close, intense game," The undead child responded, looking curiously at her.

"...or that I went easy on your team?"

"What? Do I look insane?" She replied with a soft laugh. "Everyone knows you don't go easy on anyone at any time. Not even your kid siblings." The ponytailed athlete could feel her eye twitch at that answer, which her zombie friend did pick up on. "Is...something wrong, Lynn?"

"Everything is fine…" She replied through gritted teeth. She turned quickly to leave the garage, one of her arms accidentally bumping into the table. The little plastic crew models fell over on the table top, but the ship fell right off the table toward the floor.

"Oh no!" Zanya exclaimed in fright as she made a grab for the model. The scream made Lynn pause and turn, just as Zanya missed her catch and the model fell into pieces upon contact with the ground.

"Crud! I'm so sorry!" The hot headed young teen said with wide eyes and a worried look, and she meant it. "I didn't mean to…"

"It's...ok," The zombie girl replied with gritted teeth of her own, though hers were through frustration. "It was just an accident…and it doesn't look like anything broke...the glue just wasn't set yet. I just need to stick it together again...for the third time…" There was a bit of an awkward silence as Zanya picked up the pieces of the ship, leaving Lynn to just sidle out of the garage quietly. 'What is up with her today?' The zombie girl wondered as she put the parts back onto the table.

* * *

A couple minutes later, Lynn was seated at a corner table at the Burpin' Burger with Margo, the both of them with a large soda in front of them. The sports center sister still looked agitated as she described what happened when she attempted to confront her. "...and after she denied what she said in the interview, I turned to leave and accidentally bumped the table...knocked the model she was working on to the floor."

"...accidentally?" Margo asked with a suspicious look.

"...What are you implying?" Lynn asked with a glare and a warning tone.

"Whoa, no need to get defensive, Lynnsanity," Margo replied quickly, leaning away from her angry friend. "It's just...you do have a temper, and you were pretty angry at what you read." Lynn leered at her teammate for a moment, but she knew she was right. Her history was far from spotless in that regard.

"I admit I was pretty ticked...but I wasn't that angry," She explained. "And I know Zanya puts a lot of work into those nerdy models...I wouldn't smash one of them on purpose…"

"Ok. Ok." Her friend said, trying to calm her down. "So, she denied the interview?"

"Pretty much...I want to believe her, ya know? She's my friend and all...but they wouldn't be able to put it in a school newspaper if it wasn't true, right?" Lynn put her elbows on the table, resting her forehead on her hands as she sighed.

"Well, that really depends on the school faculty," Her teammate informed her while sipping her soda. "But in general, yeah, I guess." It was at that point Mitzy had stepped into the burger restaurant; she had a craving for their french fries. While she waited for her fried spuds, her eyes wandered about the dining room and spotted Lynn in the corner. She had never met her before, but she had heard about her enough to know what she looked like. A sly smile appeared on her face as she saw an opportunity. After she had gotten her snack and a diet lemon lime soda, she made her way over to their table.

"Excuse me. You're Lynn Loud, right?" She asked her.

"Who wants to know?" Lynn responded, slowly looking up.

"Mitzy Carter, editor in chief of the Royal Woods Elementary Paper," She introduced herself, taking a seat across from her. This got the attention of the two Squirrels team members. Lynn felt she had heard that name before, but where? "I was hoping I had a chance to run into you sometime soon."

"Why is that…?" Margo inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, when I read that interview, it didn't seem very fair to me. I mean, everyone who was there could see that wasn't the whole story, and you weren't interviewed to give your side. So I want to give you the chance to set the record straight, if you want to," Mitzy explained as she pulled out a notebook and pencil.

"...I thought you were the editor, not a reporter?"

"I am, but I'm the boss too, so who's gonna tell me I can't?"

"...fair enough." Lynn thought for a moment, glancing over at her friend.

"I don't know, Lynn...maybe you better keep it between you and Zanya…"

"I think it's a little late for that, since Zanya's side is already in the paper," Mitzy retorted.

"She has a point, Margo...besides, I'm just going to be setting the record straight. It's not like I'm taking shots at Z," The toughest of the sisters rationalized with a shrug. "Alright, Mitzy. If you want the facts, I'll give you the facts."

"Wonderful," The red eyed blonde girl said as she readied herself to transcribe what Lynn had to say.

* * *

The next day, at Royal Woods Elementary School, Zanya was making her way to the soccer field, with Chandler and Melmond at her side. Her boyfriend never missed any of her soccer practices since she started on the team. Melmond, on the other hand, walked home with her after practice since his older brother had been incarcerated. As they approached the field, Zanya was describing the events of the previous day to them, wanting their opinions. "...so, what do you think?" She asked at the end of her story.

"Hmmm. Well, it sounds like an accident to me," Melmond commented.

"Yeah...but that line of questioning...what was up with that?" Chandler wondered, stroking his chin. "Why would she think you'd think she was going easy on your team?"

"Haven't a clue," The ghoul girl responded. "Maybe she was just having a bad day."

"I dunno. That seems a bit specific for just a bad day…" The popular boy frowned as he mulled his over, the three of them arriving on the field. Zanya's team looked up as soon as they stepped closer and all of them frowned at the zombie girl.

"I don't like the look of this…" The invisible boy said nervously, moving behind Zanya.

"Er...is something wrong, guys?"

"Zanya, what were you thinking!?" The team's goalie (a small, but thick built boy) yelled. "Making comments like that to the school paper!"

"What are you talking about? What comments?" Zanya asked indignantly.

"Those comments that got Lynn Loud up in arms!" He snapped.

"Bu...but Zanya hasn't said anything that would have angered her...did she?" Melmond commented meekly.

"Then why would she give this interview!?" The goalie demanded to know, pulling out his phone and showing them the article featuring an exclusive interview with Lynn. Zanya blinked as she leaned in closer for a look along with Chandler and the bandage wrapped boy. Her jaw dropped (almost literally) at what she read; not only did the tough brunette deny the accusation that the zombie girl knew she never made, she went on to verbally tear her team apart. She viciously criticized all of their mistakes (most of which Zanya didn't recall them making), picked apart their strategies, and even mocked the goalie's weight (probably the source of his anger). Chandler frowned lightly, while Zanya was too stunned to speak.

"Wait...Zanya never said that…" Melmond commented as he reread the supposed accusation.

"And how do you know that!?"

"I was there," He responded, which surprised the large goalie. "I heard the whole interview. I'm pretty sure Girl Jordan heard it too, so you can ask her if you don't believe me…" The RWE team just looked at one another, not having expected this.

"Lynn sure seems convinced she did, though…" Chandler interjected, his eyes narrowing. "And she told the reporter all about it…"

"Where's the original article?" Zanya asked, taking the phone in her hand and checking the archive. However, there was no original article. No surprise, if wrong information had been presented in it. However, this made it more difficult for the zombie girl to prove what was said wasn't true.

"...hang on. I think the chief editor is still in the building. I'll go talk to her. Maybe she can help," Melmond offered before he ran back toward the school.

"I can't believe Lynn would say all that…" the girl from Grimwood said, shaking her head sadly.

"Well, Lynn Loud is notorious for having a temper, and being a sore loser," one of the team forwards pointed out.

"Yeah, I heard that...but she's gotten better about it from what her sisters told me." Zanya said. "...I'm going to go talk to her."

"Zanya, wait! What about practice!?"

"It's just a practice for fun, and I'll be back later!" She yelled back, running toward the house of Loud.

* * *

In the computer lab, Mitzy was working with a slight smirk. She was feeling somewhat pleased at what happened. Getting Lynn Loud upset at Zanya and retaliating, all because of a slight alteration of an interview. She had to delete the article to cover her tracks, and would probably need to clear this one too, but she was feeling pretty confident regardless. 'This should make her life a little more rocky…' she thought to herself. 'But I should probably stop now. Any more bad articles will reflect poorly on me.' She was just about to clear the exclusive with Lynn from the website when a knock came to the door. "...who's there?" She asked with caution.

"Melmond Griffin. Might I come on? I need to have a word," The invisible boy said. Malora's ex friend hesitated for a moment, but then told him to come in as she minimized the browser window. He strode right into the room and took a seat in a chair a few seats down from her.

"How may I help you, Mr Griffin? Perhaps an exclusive about life being constantly invisible?"

"Er...I think not," He said, a little more nervous than before. "I...uh...just want to talk about that interview. The one with Lynn Loud."

"What about it?"

"Well, that part about Zanya saying Lynn's team went easy on hers...it never happened," He explained to her.

"Wait...really?" Melmond nodded in reply, which made Mitzy groan in frustration. "Good grief...again with the bad information, twice in a row...I seriously need to have a talk with my reporters...it may be time to clean house." She shook her head before she gave a disapproving grunt. "Are you sure about that, Melmond?"

"Yeah. I was there. I heard the whole interview," He informed her.

"I see...would you like to give your side, so I can put it on the site?"

"...I want to give my side, but I don't want it put on the website," Melmond told her meekly.

'Damn,' Mitzy thought bitterly.

"I just want to bring the peace back between them, not stir the pot further," The invisible boy told her.

"Yeah, I could understand that," She replied with a soft smile, in spite of being kind of disappointed on the inside. She pulled up the school paper website and, with him watching, pulled the exclusive interview (which she was planning to do anyway). "Alright then...set the record straight, Melmond. What really happened?"

* * *

While this was going on, Lynn was sitting on the couch in front of the tv, texting to Margo while listening to the fashion show Leni and Lola were watching. She, naturally, had no interest in such a show, but the second oldest sister got the remote first and it was better than the silence of her room.

Margo: Are sure it was a good idea to do that interview?

Lynn: Sure it was. I just wanted the truth put out there. I didn't go easy on them.

Margo: Yeah, yeah. I know that. But the rest of it?

Lynn: I was just pointing out a few ways they could improve, that's all.

Margo: Well, not everyone likes being criticized...like a certain someone I know.

"Hmph," Lynn huffed, putting her phone into rest mode. Just then, Zanya burst through the door, a little sweaty and tired from having just run there.

"Hey, Zanya," Leni chirped with a wave, not noticing the irked look on her face.

"Lynn, we need to talk," The zombie girl said seriously.

"What about?" The sporty girl asked with genuine curiosity.

"About that interview." The undead girl strolled over in front of her, her arms crossed.

"What about it?"

"First of all, I never said that your team let us win."

"Yes you did!" Lynn retaliated, quickly rising from her seat and picking up her phone. "Here, let me show you!" She pulled up her text messages and tapped the link to the original news article...only to find it was gone. "...oh yeah. She took it down after the interview," She muttered to herself.

"I'm telling you I did not!" Zanya replied firmly. "And what about all those comments about my team!?"

"It was just a little constructive criticism…"

"Calling our goalie a fat tub of guts who still couldn't somehow block the goal is constructive!?"

"What!? I never said that!" Lynn said aghast, looking very insulted. "I said he could stand to lose a little weight, but he held his own regardless."

"It's right here in black and white!" Zanya pulled up the school newspaper site and searched through the archives. To her shock, the interview was gone. "What the…? Where'd it go?"

"Well, isn't that convenient…?" The youngest of the eldest sisters said, her own arms crossed. "No evidence."

"Well, you don't have any evidence either!" As this verbal row went on, Lola and Leni looked to one another with concern. Not only that, but the other sisters were starting to gather to see what was going on: a few on the stairs, one in the kitchen, and a few in the dining room.

"I don't like the look of this…" Lori muttered from the stair railings.

"I concur...should we initiate a sister fight protocol?" Lisa inquired, stone faced as ever.

"Does it count when Zanya isn't our sister?" Lana asked quietly.

"She does live in our house and, as per the updated protocol, that qualifies," the little egghead explained. Just then, Zanya growled loudly in anger, her eyes glowing green and her fists clenched. The Loud sisters knew what this meant: she was angry and she could potentially seriously hurt someone. Not that Lynn seemed to care. She looked ready to fight.

"Forgot the semantics! Louds, sister fight protocol is go!" Lori instructed loudly. Within seconds, the assembled Loud siblings sprang into action: Lola and Lana grabbed Zanya by the arms and started to pull her away, with Luna standing between her and Lynn. Meanwhile, Lori and Leni dove on their hotheaded sibling (being the only ones strong enough to hold her), with Luan standing interference between her and the zombie girl. The sudden action surprised Zanya, who was thrown off her anger as she was led upstairs to her room by the twins. Meanwhile, Lisa was sending a text to their brother and sister at Grimwood's. Since the last disastrous use of the protocol, they've since updated it to better include their brother or give him the option to vacate if need be. They were both already away from the house, but just in case they were planning to visit, they were forewarned.

"Let me go!" The furious brunette demanded as she struggled.

"Not a chance, Lynn. Not until Zanya is safely in her room," Lori responded firmly. Lynn refused to give up as she fought tooth and nail to get out of her older sister's grip. Lisa was just considering getting a sedative when she felt her phone go off. Curious, she pulled it out and found a text from Lincoln.

Lincoln: Lisa, do me a favor and give Lynn a message from me.

Lisa: And what would that message be, pray tell?

Lincoln: Lynn, if you don't behave right now, I'm gonna come home and kick your butt.

The little genius' eyes widened when she read that. Her eyes scanned the message again in the event she had misread it, but no. It said that. She asked Lincoln if he was sure. He replied saying he was. She didn't know what kind of game their brother was planning, but it was a dangerous one. He seemed insistent, however, so Lisa decided to see where this goes. "Lynn, I just received a message for you from our sole brother."

"I-wait? Lincoln has a message for me?" The athletic sister asked in surprise, ceasing her thrashing about.

"Indeed. He says-and please do not shoot the messenger on this one-that if you don't cease this behavior right now...he's going to return to our domicile…" Lisa took a deep breath and prepared herself to run. "...and kick your hindquarters." She finally said quickly. All motion in the room stopped as all eyes fell upon Lisa. Lori, Leni and Luan all looked horrified. What was Lincoln thinking!? Was he trying to get himself hurt? Lynn, however, was much more difficult to read.

"Lincoln said that?" She asked in a flat tone. The toddler mastermind nodded once. "Lincoln. He said he was going to kick my butt?" Another affirmative response. "HE is planning to kick MY butt?" She asked one last time, getting one last nod. She just laid there on her back for a moment as if she were processing this...and then she burst out laughing. Much to the confusion of her assembled siblings. "Lincoln!? Kicking my butt!? That's the funniest thing I heard all week!"

"...ok, to be fair...that is kind of a funny thought," Luan conceded with a snicker. Lori and Leni just looked utterly lost, but the second youngest sister started to smile a bit.

"Ah. I think I see Lincoln's strategy."

"Then could you share it with the rest of us?" The oldest of the children requested.

"I could go into detail, but I believe a summary will suffice: given the obvious physical differences between our brother and our more active sister, the threat of Lincoln doing any form of damage to her posterior is deemed quite laughable to her-" She gestured toward the hysterical Lynn. "-as you can see. Luan, you often say laughter is the best medicine, correct?" The family practical joker agreed with a nod. "Well, in this case, it seems the best deterrent for possible violence between Lynn and Zanya." She concluded, just as Lynn took hold of her arm holding the phone and moved it closer so she could see the message herself. This made her laugh even harder, rolling back and forth on the floor after her older siblings finally released her. They still stood between her and the stairs, just to be safe.

'Not sure if Lincoln's move was utter genius or utter insanity…' Lori thought to herself. 'But it looks like it worked…' After a couple more minutes, the toughest of the sisters finally calmed down, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Hehehe...I'll deal with that later," Lynn commented almost breathlessly, making the older siblings look quite nervous. However, one step at a time: there was still the problem of Lynn and Zanya's beef.

"Well, now that you've calmed down...what is going on?" Lori insisted on knowing.

"It all started with a comment Zanya made...she had the nerve to say my team went easy on hers…" She answered, the frown returning to her face.

"Zanya really said that to you?" The kind, yet dull witted teen asked in surprise.

"Er...no...but I read it in a news story, directly from the Elementary School paper."

"Can we see that story?" Luan asked with a raised eyebrow, looking suspicious.

"Can't. The story got deleted after the Chief Editor got my side of the story," Lynn informed her.

"The Chief Editor?"

"What exactly did you say to the editor?" The leader of the Loud kids asked, wanting to stay on topic.

"I pretty much told her that we never went easy on her team, said they played alright, but there was room for improvement. The forwards could have coordinated better, Zanya herself could have spread out a bit more, the goalie could have lost a little weight...that kinda stuff. That was yesterday."

"I guess Zanya saw that article today then?" The head of Funny Business inquired.

"I guess...but what she said I said wasn't what I said," Lynn responded.

"Uh...say what?" Leni asked, kind of confused.

"She said that I said stuff like the goalie was a fat tub of guts. I never said that," Lynn told her, looking offended. "I mean, the guy was a little chunky, but I know muscle when I see it."

"Where is this article?" Luan wanted to know.

"On the website, I imagine, though the one Zanya claimed she read is missing...of course," The sports star said with a roll of her eyes. Her comedic older sister quickly checked her phone, only to frown.

"Your story isn't there either," Luan informed her, her eyes narrowing.

"Say what?" The smaller brunette leaned forward to look, but the archives showed no sign of her story. "What the hey?"

"Something's not right here…" Lori mused out loud, stroking her chin with a single finger. Just then, Lynn's phone pinged. She blinked and looked into the screen. Her eyes widened, then her face turned a fiery red, fire in her eyes.

* * *

"...what was all that?" A confused Zanya asked after the twins had successfully managed to get her into Lincoln's room, with Luna blocking the door.

"Sister fight protocol," Lola explained, looking pleased at a job well executed. "It's a little thing we came up with to help bring an end to fights among us quickly."

"Well, actually, it's our second protocol. We had to make changes to it after an...incident," Lana elaborated, rubbing the back of her head nervously.

"Point being, dudette, we had to jump in and split you two up, before tonight became fight night," Luna told her. "So, what's got you both up in arms?"

"Well, Lynn accused me of claiming I said her team let us win our soccer game," The undead girl started as she sat down on Lincoln's bed. "Which I did not! So she went on to have an interview with the school paper saying I was lying and bashing my team. When I confronted her about it, she denied the interview...but I also couldn't find it again...nor could I find the original article of mine…"

"And, naturally, the two of you got angrier and angrier…" Lola said to continue the story. "...which nearly led to a full on fight."

"Basically...she wouldn't admit she was wrong and I know I'm not wrong…"

"Naturally...still, something I don't get...where did the articles go?" Luna wondered aloud, a pensive expression on her face.

"...Lynn mentioned someone took mine down after her interview...I guess they took the other one down after Melmond spoke to the chief editor," Zanya answered after a moment of consideration. "Probably because first Lynn complained, then Mel did."

"Must not be a good paper if they put up stories that they don't check beforehand…" Lana said with some contempt, her arms crossed.

"True that, sis," Luna agreed. "But that's on the editors, as well as the reporters." Before they could go any further…

"OH, SO NOW YOU GOT YOUR FRIENDS TO TRY AND MAKE ME LOOK BAD!" Lynn screamed up the stairs in absolute fury, making her sisters and their guest jump. Lana ran to the top of the stairs, seeing Lori, Leni and Luan all struggling to keep her from rushing up the stairs. She was mad beyond reason. "DON'T HAVE THE GAUL TO DO YOUR OWN DIRTY WORK, HUH!?"

"What are you talking about!?" Zanya yelled back.

"Don't respond, Z...it'll make things worse," The rocker sister cautioned her, to no avail.

"YOUR BUDDY IS AT THE SCHOOL RIGHT NOW, TRYING TO SMEAR MY NAME!"

"Lynn, calm down, for crying out loud!" Lori instructed as she tried to hold her back with all her might.

"No he isn't! He just wanted to talk-"

"Oh, he's talking alright! Talking trash about me in your name!" If Lana, Lola, and Luna weren't blocking the door, the zombie girl probably would have ran out and dove on the raging athlete. "I didn't start this fight, but I damn well plan to finish it!"

"I didn't start this fight either, Lynn...but if you're going to keep bad mouthing me and my friends…"

"Zanya, don't…" The pageant princess pleaded, becoming panicked herself.

"Lynn, there's no need for this…" Leni tried to reason with her hot headed younger sister. However, neither side was showing any signs of backing down. The oldest of the sisters knew she needed to act now. She pulled the whistle from her pocket and blew into it. The shrill sound made all the sisters freeze in place and stand in attention. Pleased with the reaction, she grabbed Lynn and held her under her arm.

"Hey!" The smaller, but more muscular girl objected.

"There's going to be no fight here on my watch," The authoritative blonde told them all firmly, taking the squirming little firecracker toward the backyard. "Zanya, stay up there. Lynn, you're coming with me. Neither of you are going anywhere near each other until you both calm the flip down." Her tone suggested that this was not up for negotiation. Not that it slowed the steamed thirteen year old; she was still running on pure wrathful adrenaline. However, her older sister was pretty tough as well, and wasn't going to be stopped from laying down the law even by her. Once she was out back, she dropped Lynn onto the grass and sat down on the back porch.

"...did you have to carry me out like that!? I'm not a child!" The ponytailed little fireball complained.

"Then stop acting like one," Lori spat in response. "You're going to stay out here and cool off. Exercise some. Punch the sandbag. Whatever. Just cool your temper, or you're not going back in there." She then looked up toward the house. "And Zanya, you stay up there in your room until you've calmed down." She knew they were all listening from the window and she wanted to be fair. Lynn just huffed in anger, crossing her arms as she turned her back on Lori. She still wanted to get her fight, but she wasn't going to do so with her drill sergeant sister sitting there. She needed to be more clever. She pulled out her phone and tried to text Zanya. No good: her number was blocked. If she didn't think to do it herself, her sisters probably encouraged her to do it to prevent possible cyber war...little tattle tails. She wasn't out of options, however. She sent a message to Margo and Francisco, asking them to go meet with Zanya's friend at the elementary school to pass a message for her.

* * *

'What is going on today?' Chandler wondered as he wandered about the school grounds, looking for Melmond. After watching a couple minutes of the game, he had lost interest, and was wondering what was taking both Zanya and Melmond. His undead girlfriend had a long distance to go, so he kind of understood that, but what about the ever invisible young man? 'It shouldn't take this long just to talk to someone, even for someone as shy as Melmond,' He thought to himself. He was about to head inside, thinking maybe he had gotten a drink or snack from the cafeteria vending machine, when he heard a voice.

"Hey, do you know where we could find Melmond?" He paused with his hand on the door handle and turned around. Standing behind him was an annoyed Margo and a confused Francisco.

"Who wants to know?" He asked with a frown.

"Don't give us sass, kid," Margo grumbled, scowling. "We just want to ask him to pass on a message for us from Lynn to Zanya."

"What kind of message?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you know Zanya?" Francisco asked.

"She's my girlfriend, so yes, I do know her," The brown haired boy replied, sounding a little angry. Lynn's boyfriend and best friend looked to one another before Margo started to text Lynn. "Now, what is the message?"

"...we haven't gotten it yet. Lynn sent us to find him first before she would give us the message," Franc admitted, looking kind of embarrassed about it. Chandler's frown turned into a confused expression. He almost wanted to laugh.

"...while we wait, maybe you two could tell me something...what's up with her lately?" The cool kid asked.

"...what exactly do you mean?" Margo inquired, looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"The way she's been accusing Zanya of saying things she never said...she said that Zanya accused her of saying her team went easy on her team."

"Well, did she?" Francisco asked, being the only one who wasn't really in the loop.

"No. And then, Lynn goes and bashes her team…"

"No, she didn't," Margo told him, looking up from her phone just as Lynn sent her message back. "I was there when she gave that interview, and she hadn't said a single harsh word...well, by her standards, anyway."

"Well, Melmond was there when Zanya gave her interview. That's why he went to go talk to the Chief Editor," Chandler said, jabbing a thumb behind him.

"Wait..he didn't go to bad mouth Lynn?" Margo asked in surprise.

"Mel? I don't think he quite has the nerve to do that, not even to someone who deserves it. What gave you the impression that he did?"

"That's what Lynn told us that the Chief Editor told her…" Francisco replied.

"Reeeeally now...that's interesting…" Chandler said with an even more distinct frown, one arm crossed in front of him and one hand on his chin. "...you know...she seems to be at the very center of this, doesn't it?"

"Now that you mention it…" The teen with a long, light brown hair commented, a look of deep thought on her face. "She did approach Lynn about the interview at the Burpin' Burger…"

"And she controls the newspaper too," Francisco added. "You think she's behind this?"

"Can't say for certain yet...but I know a way we can find out," Zanya's beau said with a cunning grin. He opened the door leading into the school, just as Melmond was about to emerge.

"Huh? Oh, hey Chandler. Who are your friends?" The invisible boy asked.

"I'll explain later. Take us to where the Chief Editor is," Chandler requested. Mel was very confused about this, but did as he requested, taking the young man and two teens to the computer lab. He was about to open the door, but the brown haired boy shook his head silently. "Ok. Here he is. Now, what's that message LYNN has for ZANYA?" He asked with a raised voice, emphasizing the names Lynn and Zanya. He leaned closer to the door for a listen, hearing footsteps coming closer to the door. Margo was a little confused at first, but when she saw the message, then looked at how the boy was focused on the door, she caught on.

"She said...tell that kid to tell that green skinned big mouth that it's on. Name the time and place, and she'll kick her scrawny butt from here to California and back," She responded. Melmond looked alarmed, as did Francisco. Chandler, however, pulled out his phone and casually sent a message to Zanya.

Chandler: Hey babe. Strange question, but if you were going to get into a fight with Lynn and really wanted to stick it to her...where would it be?

He waited for a moment before he got a response from her.

Zanya: Bad time to ask, since I really want to belt her one right now...but I suppose right on the soccer field, where it all started.

"She says she'll meet her at the soccer field, tomorrow after school. Be there, or she'll hunt her down," He lied, listening carefully. He could swear he heard a kind of squee from inside the computer lab. He then put a finger to his lips as he carefully nudged open the door so he could better hear what was going on.

* * *

"This is going so much better than I could have expected!" Mitzy said gleefully, not having heard the door open a crack. "And to think, I actually considered stopping after Lynn's interview. Now I have a big exclusive about a big fight...that zombie is going to get in SO much trouble…" She was about to send a message to Principal Huggins, but then paused, thinking for a moment. "...On the other hand...a fight between the legendary Lynn Loud and a real zombie...kids would love to see that. They might even pay a bundle to see it...then I can not only get the story, but pictures, a small fortune, AND get her in trouble too!" She giggled excitedly as she brought up Headspace on the school computer and put up a message about the upcoming fight, knowing her friends would spread the word.

* * *

While she was advertising for a fight that didn't exist yet, Chandler simply nudged his head toward the door out of school. They had heard enough, and now they needed to report what they found to Zanya and Lynn.

* * *

Several minutes later, at the Loud House, things seemed to be quieting down. Lynn had calmed down enough to stop raging and storming, though she was still on edge at not receiving a reply to her text. She was still itching for a fight, though, but she thought a new strategy was in order: she'd play nice. Lori would see she's no longer angry and bring her back in and, provided her prey also cooled down, would let her out of the room as well. Once they were in the same room...well, someone may as well ring the bell then. So that was what Lynn did. "...ok, Lori...I've calmed down," She lied after she had stopped yelling for a little while, keeping her tone even. "I'm ready to talk about things."

"Really now?" Her oldest sister inquired suspiciously. She knew her sisters darn well; knew when they had something up their sleeve. However, it did appear the little hot head had cooled down enough to be rational. "You're not angry anymore?"

"...I am still angry...but I'm calm. I'm not looking for a fight anymore." Lori looked at her for a moment as the young athlete looked back with a stone faced expression. Something didn't seem right, but she wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. The authoritative blonde simply nodded to her and gestured to her to follow her inside. When they went inside, Lori noticed that the others had brought their zombie guest downstairs already. Zanya was standing by the front door, while Lynn stood by the door to the kitchen. The tension thickened immediately the moment the two of them locked eyes. The former's eyes narrowed, while the latter scowled at her. The Loud sisters could sense something bad was about to happen, but just as they went to act and Lynn made a rush for Zanya, there was a loud thud at the door.

"OW!" came a pained cry from the portal.

"W-what the?" Lynn asked, skidding to a stop a mere millisecond after she started. Leni ran to the door to see what that was, and found Melmond, Margo, Fancisco, and Chandler standing on the front porch, Zanya's boyfriend hopping on one foot while holding his other foot.

"Oh, hi guys. This...really isn't the best time…" Leni told them.

"Sorry, Leni, but this is important," Francisco said as he kind of pushed past her, followed by the others.

"What happened to him?" Luan asked as Chandler limped in.

"...he tried to burst in all dramatic like…" Melmond explained, which made a few of the sisters chuckle while the undead girl ran to him to check on his foot.

"...oook...and what is so important that you felt the need to kick the door down?" Lori asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Zanya, Lynn...you're both being played," Chandler informed them, once Zanya was certain there was no lasting damage to his foot.

"Say what!?" Lynn snapped.

"It's true. We heard the whole thing," Margo concurred, making her brunette friend blink. "The Chief Editor made up the stuff you both 'said', to pit the two of you against one another."

"What? Why would Mitzy do that?" The ponytailed sports superstar asked.

"Mitzy? You mean...Malora's ex friend?" The green skinned young lady inquired in surprise. When Lynn heard that, she paused for a moment as she mulled it over, then smacked herself in the forehead.

"THAT'S where I heard her name before...gah, how could I have forgotten…?"

"To be fair, Lynn, she's kinda flown under the radar since Malora got arrested," Chandler told her. "Since she got in a lot of hot water just by being associated with her."

"Then why would she act now?" Lisa asked with a frown.

"I think that hardly matters…" Luna said, also frowning. "The point is she did this."

"Geez...I'm sorry, Z…" The youngest of the older sisters apologized, looking pretty embarrassed at being tricked. "...I really shouldn't have thought you'd say that kinda stuff…"

"I'm sorry too, Lynn. I almost lost my head over this too…" The Grimwood girl admitted, pulling her head off of her neck for a second before putting it back on. The two slowly approached one another and firmly shook hands, right before the two hugged each other.

"...so, what are we going to do about this?" The toughest of the sisters asked after the two of them separated, cracking her knuckles.

"Actually, Chandler already kinda did something about it," Mel piped up. "To make sure she was the one responsible, he told us that Zanya wanted to meet Lynn at the soccer field for a fight."

"Hehe. Yeah," The young man said with a smirk. "And by the sound of it, she was planning on making it a pay per view event. I can only imagine what will happen when her customers learn there is no fight."

"...I don't think that's quite enough," Zanya said with a shake of the head.

"Yeah. She made a fool of us, and tried to get us to fight," Lynn agreed angrily. "She deserves more than just being made a fool of in return."

"Hmmmm. Sounds like you could use some help from someone who knows their way around a revenge plot…" Luan commented with a sly smirk on her face.

"Are you offering?" The raven haired ghoul girl asked with a grin.

"Are you asking?"

"We're asking!" The two who were once at war exclaimed together.

"Well, since you're asking...I may have a little idea…" The family joker said in a sing song voice. "But I'll need a little help…" She motions for Lynn and Zanya to come a little closer, then Luna and Lisa. Once they were all in a huddle, she started to whisper her plan to them, with Lola sneaking over to listen in as well.

* * *

The next day, the excitement was thick in Royal Woods Elementary. Mitzy's social media advertising and word of mouth made sure practically every student in the school knew about the fight. Even Zanya's friends got wind of it, and were beside themselves with worry. However, the zombie girl assured them that things were just fine. They weren't entirely convinced, so they decided they would accompany her and make sure she'd be alright. Once the final bell rang, there was a mass exodus to the soccer field not far from the school. Students of all grades were filling the bleachers, and even taking up space beside the field (after paying Mitzy for their seat, of course). What no one saw, however, was Luan arriving on the scene, chilling out just out of sight, and Luna getting herself set up under the bleachers. Lisa was among the crowd, having snuck past Malora's ex friend due to her size. The professional clown smiled as she noticed all the pieces coming into place. "Alright...what's going on here!?" Came the voice of an unexpected bump in the road: Principal Huggins.

"Principal Huggins!" Luan squeaked when she heard him, turning quickly. "W-what a surprise."

"Luan Loud...even when you aren't a student in my school, whenever there is chaos, there you are…" He said with a scowl, folded arms and a clear tone of disappointment.

"What are you doing out here?"

"I might ask you the same thing...but if you must know, I had gotten word of a fight possibly happening today...at this exact location…" He turned his serious eyes toward the crowd of children who were oblivious to his arrival.

"I promise you, sir...it's not what it seems," She tried to tell him, hoping she could stall him long enough for their plan to go into effect.

"Is that so?" He inquired in disbelief, just as Lynn and Francisco stepped onto the pitch. Lynn was wearing some kind of robe like she was a championship boxer, with the word 'Lynn-Sanity' etched onto the back. She raised her arms with confidence and bravado, inciting cheers from the younger students.

"You're sure you still want to go through with this?" Her boyfriend asked, making sure others near her heard him.

"Without question," She answered as he helped her out of her robe. Just then, the sound of rattling chains was heard. All eyes turned to see an angry looking Zanya stomping onto the field, chains wrapped around her wrists and her midsection. Chandler was being dragged behind her, as if he was trying to stop her. As soon as she saw Lynn, her eyes glowed green. With a sharp pull of her arms, she shattered the chains around her wrists. All went silent at this display of strength; even the sporty Loud was surprised and kinda shaken by that. She had heard bits and pieces of Zanya's boosted strength, but this was the first time she saw it in person. 'Stick to the plan,' She thought to herself as she put her game face back on in time for the zombie girl to snap the metal around her waist. She chucked the steel links aside and the two squared off close to the center of the field.

"It certainly looks like a fight to me…" Principal Huggins said angrily as he made a move to intervene.

"Sir! Trust me! It's not what it looks like!" Luan cried as she blocked his path.

"Miss Loud, stand aside right now!"

"I'm gonna bite you!" Lynn threatened her opponent, taking a big step forward.

"And I'm gonna beat you!" Zanya retorted, the two of them getting one step closer.

"Well, I'm gonna fight you!"

"And I'm gonna eat you!" They were so close now, their foreheads were touching.

"Bite you!" Lynn shouted.

"Beat you!" Zanya screamed.

"Fight you!"

"Eat you!" It was at this point Principal Huggins pushed Luan aside with the intention of putting an end to this. However, before he could set foot onto the pitch, the two alleged combatants stepped away from one another and sang together:

"_Let's call the whole thing off_." Confusion immediately fell over the crowd, almost everyone muttering to their neighbors. What was going on? Wasn't there supposed to be a fight? The Elementary School principal froze in place, equally befuddled as to what was going on. Even more so when music started to play from the speakers.

"_You say tomato, and I say tomahto..._" Lynn sang, swaying her arms a bit as she kinda danced in place.

"_You say potato, and I say potahto…_" Zanya harmonized, shuffling her feet to the music.

"_Who says potahto?_"

"_Well, who says tomahto?_"

"_Let's call the whole thing off!" _The pair vocalized, while starting a sort of tap dance routine right on the grass.

"_Iiiiif we call the whole thing off, we will have to stop the show._" After Lynn sang that, Zanya grinned at her.

"_Stop the show? Heh. I dunno._"

"Wait...I get what this is," Zach said suddenly, a smile appearing on his face. "It's like that anti comedy stuff. You know, where you expect a joke, but no joke happens? This is an anti fight."

"An anti fight?" A sixth grade girl beside him asked.

"Yeah...you know, that makes sense," A third grade boy commented, nodding his head and smiling as well. "Yeah...that's clever." Some of the students seemed to agree, while others were just enjoying the showtune. However, there were some who looked very unhappy about this.

"This stinks! We paid to see a fight, not a musical!" An unhappy fifth grader shouted from the mass of students.

"What are you trying to pull!?" Another voice, that of a sixth grader, roared above the music. As more and more kids voiced their discontent, angry eyes were starting to be cast toward Mitzy, who was standing ringside looking utterly shocked.

"_You sat contracts, I say contracts._" The zombie girl said in a musical manner.

"_You say compact, I say compact._" The ponytailed tough girl replied in song, before pausing and thinking about what she just said. "_Wait a minute...aren't they the same thing?_" She asked. Zanya just looked at her for a moment before continuing with the number.

"_...Let's call the whole thing off. _

_Iiiif we call the whole thing off, we wouldn't have to fight._"

"_You say no fight? I say alright._" With that, the two started a dance break, while some of their non-fans were worming their way out of their seats to discuss their grievances with Mitzy. While Lynn wasn't really what one would call an accomplished dancer, Lola coached her as best she could in the short time they had. And she was doing alright too, as a result.

"Hey, you're not half bad, Lynn," The Grimwood girl told her encouragingly.

"Pretty good for a gal who never went to rehearsal, eh?" Lynn replied in an almost cocky manner. "You're quite the hoofer too. You take lessons before?"

"When I was like four or five, before 'it' happened, but it never really clicked with me, so I never pursued it," The undead child explained. She then stopped and turned to her dance partner. "Take it!" The athletic Loud launched into a quick tap routine, as her little sister had taught her too. Being a beginner to dancing, she flubbed a few of the steps, but no one really noticed. She then gestured for Zanya to do the same, only to blink in surprise. The zombie lass had separated her torso from her lower body and was doing a dance duet with her legs while on her hands. Half of the audience laughed at this, while the other half (of those not tearing Mitzy a new one) applauded her. It took a moment for the youngest of the older sisters to shake off her shock long enough for her to smirk and make a comment of,

"Show off…"

"You're one to talk," Zanya replied in jest before she thrust her upper body back onto her lower body and, after securing it back into place, proceeded with the show. "_You say meat, and I say meet._"

"_Well, now you made me hungry...for meatballs,_" The sports star responded, holding her stomach.

"What is it with you and meatballs?" Lynn simply shrugged before replying,

"What can I say? They taste great, they're full of protein, you can use any kind of meat and sauce in any combination to make something new…"

"...when you put it like that, I see your point," The undead child said with a giggle, just as her stomach growled. "...and now you got me hungry."

"What do you say we wrap this up and go get a bite to eat?" The tough teen offered, pointing her thumb over her shoulder.

"Sounds good to me."

"Big finish!" They exclaimed together before singing, "_Let's call the whole thing off!_" As the finale of the song approached, the two of them wrapped an arm around each other's shoulders, looking like the best of friends. "_Let's. Call. The whole. Thing. OOOOOOOOOOFFFFFFFFFF!_" Luna grinned from under the bleachers as she played the last few notes on her keyboard, and Lynn and Zanya started to leave the field. "We're done here!" They said together to the applause of the students remaining on the stands.

"...Miss Loud, I don't know how you done it...but I know you done it again…" Principal Huggins said in a low voice as he tried to process what just happened.

"Thank you, sir...but I can't take the credit on this one," Luan told him calmly. "The one responsible for this little show is right over yonder." She pointed right toward the crowd of angry children currently surrounding Mitzy, who was trying to stammer out an explanation. The moment he saw this, the middle aged principal smelled trouble and ran over to the angry mob.

"What gives!? You promised the fight of the century!"

"If I wanted a song and dance, I'd watch the flipping drama club!"

"You gypped us!"

"We want our money back!" were just some of the complaints that the scared red head was attempting to field as she tried to hold the mob at arm's length.

"I'm sorry...I don't understand what went wrong. I had them fighting like cats and dogs...I had them at each other's throats…" She tried to explain to them.

"So...you instigated this fight, Miss Carter?" The stern, disapproving voice of the stick in the mud principal said from her right side. Her blood turned to ice as she turned to look into his piercing gaze.

"What fight!? Not a single punch was thrown!" Someone in the discontented crowd complained. "And she charged ten bucks a pop for it!"

"Instigating a fight AND attempting to personally profit off of it!?" Principal Huggins grabbed hold of Mitzy's arm, angrier than he had been in a while. "I expected better from you, Miss Carter…"

"Wait a minute! What about our money!?"

"Under normal circumstances, I would say that's on you and you should know better…" The balding man responded. "...however, in the interest of fairness...I believe it is only right Miss Carter returns EVERYONE'S MONEY." He made sure to raise his voice when he said everyone's money, which got the attention of the rest of the audience. Malora's ex friend whimpered pathetically as she pulled out the wad of cash she had earned from the fight and started passing ten dollar bills back to her customers, with the principal watching to make sure everyone got their refund.

"Principal Huggins, if I may," Lisa said, gently tugging at the leg of his khaki pants. "With information I've gathered from both Zanya and Lynn, I have reason to believe Miss Carter has been abusing her position as Chief Editor of the school paper in order to facilitate this altercation between them." Mitzy shuddered as she paused in the act of giving a refund, glaring at the toddler.

"What proof do you have of that!?" She demanded to know, thinking there was no way she could pin that on her.

"Presently, only witness testimony. Basically hearsay," The bespectacled four year old admitted. "However, if I may access the school computers for a moment, I believe we can find something." Mitzy just rolled her eyes and continued returning bills to students. "After all, even if files and information are deleted, it is simple enough to check the logs for the loss of such data and, from there, recover it." The Chief Editor almost choked on nothing when she heard Lisa say that, an alarmed expression on her face.

"Y-you can do that…?"

"I think that sounds like an excellent idea, Miss Loud. We will investigate the moment everyone has been refunded." The principal commented firmly. Mitzy's shoulders slumped in defeat as the stack of money shrank more and more.

'I blew it…' She thought to herself sullenly. 'I had them fighting...I could have stopped there. But no...I got greedy and didn't know when to quit...just like Malora…' Meanwhile, Luan continued to observe with a grin, sticking around so she could walk Lisa home after she was done. To her, this was a plan well executed.

"Let's hope this changes her show-tune. Hahahaha!" She joked to herself before giggling at her own pun.

* * *

_AN: The original song "Let's call the whole thing off" was made by Fred Astaire, but I was introduced to it via The Muppet Show, as sung by Sylvester Stallone (which was the opening I used here). This song was also the reason I decided to do this chapter. I thought that ending bit up first and built backwards from there. Here's hoping you enjoyed it._


	16. Chapter 16: Midnight Flight

_AN: This one ended up shorter than I thought it would. I actually had a song I wanted to include, a parody of "A Whole New World", but I couldn't get it to come out right, so it ended up getting scrapped so the story wouldn't end up taking forever and a half. Before we get into the story, allow me to answer a few questions._

_Ironchef: Yes, Rani is the Garuda who graduated in Zanya's first year at Grimwood's. As for the character idea you pitched, maybe. I'll put some thought into it and see what sticks._

_Special thanks to qazse for the idea for this chapter. I do wish I could have done a bit more on their late night flight, but I hope I did it justice._

* * *

The Midnight Flight of Lincoln Loud

"Alright earthlings, and M-149," M Female Prime declared, smacking her hand upon a stack of books on her desk. This was an attempt to get their attention, but most of the class was looking at her already; just with a bored expression. The martian mother was knowledgeable about science, but her prideful and condescending attitude was getting old fast. Even Milly was over it at this point. 'At least this was the last review class before final exams began' was the silver lining on most of the Grimwood students' minds. "We've covered physics, chemistry, geology, and the science of your planet…" she told them, before muttering "I suppose a strong understanding of the basics is important…" She then continued "Today, we will be covering the final subject to be covered in your examinations this year...biology."

"Oh, this will be fun…" Winnie grumbled sarcastically as the chief scientist of Mars picked up the biology textbook. There were bookmarks strategically placed in the tome, indicating what topics needed to be covered. She started to flip through the book.

"Hmmm...earth flora, earth fauna, general microbiology…" She said quietly as she checked the places Miss Grimwood marked. She was almost to the final chapter to be discussed when she paused, looking intently at a few pages. "What in the red sands…?" She asked perplexedly, tilting her head back and forth as she examined whatever she was looking at. "Is that right?" The students paying the most attention (Elsa, Ignatius, Sibella, and Milly) were looking to one another in confusion. What could she be looking at? "Earth boy L!" She suddenly exclaimed. Lincoln didn't respond at first, but then Milly nudged him.

"She means you, Lincoln," she whispered.

"Oh! Ahem...sorry, Ma'am. Yes, Ma'am?" He asked hurriedly, blushing a little.

"Come here and tell me if what this book says about Earth human biology is true," she demanded.

'I wonder what it could be…' He wondered as he rose from his desk. As he walked across the room, a horrible thought hit him, making him shudder a bit. 'Oh goodness, I hope it isn't what I think it is…' He gulped and braced himself as he approached the adult martian, who leaned over to show him the information she was looking at. The one son blinked as he looked at it. It was a diagram of the human digestive system. He almost laughed out of relief, but kept a straight face as he looked it over and nodded. "Yeah, that's about right. There are some minor differences with each individual human, but that's the general idea."

"Fascinating...I never expected such an efficient digestive tract from Earthlings," She commented quietly as she stared intently into the book. "Perhaps Martian knowledge pertaining to Earthlings could do with some updating...I will do an independent study of this later." She quickly closed the book, looking to Lincoln. "I don't suppose you could aid me in this study; making sure the data I'm collecting from the book is accurate?"

"Well...alright, I guess," He answered back, a little taken aback. "Lisa might be a better choice for that, but I could try and help."

"Good. If we were unaware of this regarding Earthlings, I shudder to think what else we may not know," The martian mother said before she motioned the human boy to return to his seat. "The Earthling circulatory system, the muscular system, the reproductive system…" Lincoln froze about half way to his desk, his whole face going bright red when he heard that, which made some of his classmates chuckle and giggle at the look on his face.

"I take it back. It was kinda fun," Winnie muttered, though she did feel sorry for Lincoln as the one son prayed she never actually asked for his help confirming anything about that last subject. Sibella too felt sympathy for her human boyfriend; not just for his embarrassment here (though she still found his blush adorable), but she knew that studying for finals was stressing him out as much as it was anyone else. He needed to relax a little, or there would be no way he was getting any rest that night. Fortunately, she had a plan: the two would be meeting for a private magic lesson that evening, where she had a surprise prepared for him. She simply needed to wait.

* * *

Several hours later, after the sun had set, Lincoln was starting to trudge up the stairs to the top of the tower. He always enjoyed the private lessons in magic he had with Sibella. Heck, he loved spending time with her in general. Today, however, he hoped the lesson would be a short one. After yet another day of intense studying, he wasn't sure how much more his mind could take. When he arrived, he immediately spotted the lovely vampiress standing at the window. Seeing her there, bathed in the light of the moon, made the one son's heart skip a beat. "Good evening, Lincoln. Punctual as ever," She said happily, turning to face him.

"G-good evening, Sibella," He replied with a silly sort of smile.

"I have a special treat planned for tonight," She informed him, gliding her way closer to him.

"Is that so? What are we learning tonight?"

"Close your eyes and I'll show you," Sibella said with a wink. This made the white haired boy curious as he closed his eyes and covered them. "Ellevan avatin trasorma cletorive." She chanted, waving a hand toward him. A violet glow surrounded the young man, who started to shrink in size. Within a few seconds, he was buried in a pile of his own clothes. Once the spell had finished, she could see a little lump squirming under his orange shirt. She moved it over to reveal a small snow bird, who looked a little confused. He looked up at her and gasped.

"Sibella! Y-You've grown…"

"Not quite, dearest," She told him, pulling a mirror from nowhere and showing it to him. He looked into the mirror and gasped again.

"I'm...I'm a bird?" He asked in shock. He spread his wings and looked them over. "I'm a bird!" He exclaimed excitedly, before his expression changed to one of horror. "...I'm a bird…"

"There there, Lincoln. Calm down," She said with a smile, gently stroking his head with a finger. "It's not permanent. It's part of the surprise."

"It...is?" He asked, blushing even so slightly at the head petting.

"Mmm hmm," She responded, gently picking him up and nuzzling him. "You seemed so stressed, so I thought you'd like a chance to relax."

"As a bird?" He inquired, as she set him on the window sill.

"I thought it would be lovely if we took a nice, moonlit flight together," She explained, as she transformed into a bat herself. "Just the two of us, the stars, and the moon." She smiled sweetly at him, caressing his face with one wing.

"Hehehe...that does sound nice, Sibella...but I don't know how to fly," He told her, glancing somewhat fearfully out the window; particularly, at how it was a long way down.

"Don't worry, Lincoln. I will teach you and keep you safe." Sibella gave him a soft kiss on the feathery cheek before she moved closer to the edge. "We're pretty high up, so we can start by just gliding." She motioned him to join her, which the one son did after gulping nervously. "Just spread your wings out, like this," She instructed, extending her own wings as a demonstration. Lincoln followed her example, though he was still shaking somewhat. "And then...jump!" She leapt off the sill, diving for a few inches before rising and coming to hover in front of the window, flapping her wings. "It's easy. Just keep your wings spread and let the air do most of the work."

"Alright...here goes," The middle Loud said as he braced himself, closed his eyes, and sprang off the ledge. He descended for a few inches, making his heart race for a moment before he noticed he wasn't falling, but soaring. He opened his eyes to see he was gliding through the sky, Sibella flying beside him.

"There you go, Lincoln," She said happily.

"I'm flying...I'm flying!" He exclaimed, fit to burst with excitement as he started to flap his wings.

"Whoa there. You don't need to flap so much," She told him. "Flapping uses a lot of energy. Only do that if you need to fly faster or gain more height."

"Oh. Hehe. Right." The one son relaxed a bit, ceasing his flapping.

"That's better. Just let the wind do the work," Sibella said with an approving nod. She spent the next few minutes teaching him how to maneuver in flight; turning, rising, diving. She even taught him a few tricks. Her currently feathered boyfriend was laughing and chuckling as he flew through the sky, which made her heart swell. To him, it was like all his problems were left at the top of the tower. He would do barrel rolls and flips in the air, making Sibella giggle at his light showboating. "You're really getting the hang of this, Lincoln," She told him. "But don't over do it, darling. I wouldn't want you to tire and fall."

"Sorry, Sibella. It's just...this is so exciting for me," He told her as he once more tried to calm down.

"I know, Lincoln," She responded with a sweet smile. "And that excitement is just precious. However, no need to over do it the first time. Besides, you wouldn't want to fall asleep before we get to our destination."

"Oh? Where are we going?"

"You'll see~" She said with a teasing wink. Fortunately for the human lad, he didn't have to wait long to see where they were headed; a farm that looked like it hadn't seen human contact in decades. The land was all overgrown, and all the buildings were advanced stages of disrepair. They were further away from the school than Miss Grimwood would have liked or allowed. However, Sibella had come out this way a number of times before. She was sure it was safe. The two landed at the top of an old abandoned barn. Up there, there was a gorgeous view of the star spangled sky. The two of them gazed up at the full moon as they stood side by side on the arrow of a rusted weather vane. "Isn't it a lovely night, Lincoln?"

"It sure is," The boy turned snowbird commented, leaning in close to her to nuzzle her. "A beautiful night to share with a beautiful woman like you."

"Hehehe. Oh, Lincoln, you are so sweet," Sibella replied, kissing him on the cheek. While they were enjoying each other's company under the starry night sky, something stirred inside the old barn. A large, old gray owl with a flattened kind of face. The old bird yawned as he hopped from his nest and walked over to the opening to the hay loft.

"Hmmmm. Another night, another hunt…" He grumbled to himself before turning his large eyes toward the ground. "What's on the menu for tonight?" He asked no one in particular. He scanned the overgrown area for a moment, when he spotted a small group of mice. "Mmhmmm...mice…" He looked a little further, where he saw a fat old rodent among wild onions. "Mice with onions…" Further investigation revealed to him a tender young rat standing atop a fence post. "Rodent on a stick…" And finally, he saw a family of little mice eating a half eaten cream filled donut, getting it all over themselves. "...and Creme de la Meese for dessert…" The elderly barn owl sighed with a shake of his head. "I like mice as much as the next bird of prey...but goodness if it doesn't get tedious after a fashion. Night in and night out, the same thing. What I wouldn't give for something different...a snake, a squirrel...something to break up the monotony," he said to himself. Just as he prepared himself to begin his hunt for another meal of mice, he heard something.

"Hey, Sibella...wait here a second." The seasoned predator paused and looked toward the roof. He never heard that voice before. He took a few steps back to hide in the shadows, to watch and wait and see what that was.

"Ok, Lincoln dear. Don't be long." Seconds later, he saw the little white bird gliding off the roof, flying toward the nearby woods.

"A snowbird? At this time of year? That shouldn't be…" The barn owl said with a light frown. "...then again, the way the weather patterns have been lately, who can say. Hmmmm. I've never had snowbird before...this could be quite an experience," He added, a bit of a smile appearing on his beak. The old bird watched Lincoln from a distance as he fluttered over to a bush of night blooming flowers. As soon as he landed on the bush, the owl swooped out from the hay loft, silently soaring toward his prey. However, there was one thing he didn't count on: Sibella. The purple bat was keeping an eye on Lincoln as well, and when she saw the owl headed right for him…

"LINCOLN! LOOK OUT!" She cried out. The winged raptor flinched mid stalk while the warlock turned bird turned his head. He gasped and bolted as fast as his little wings could carry him.

"Stool pigeon…" The barn owl grumbled. "...looks like I'll have to work for my breakfast…" The bird of prey flew up high so he could keep watch over the snowbird. Meanwhile, Lincoln was flying like the wind, circling trees, ducking through shrubs and swaying around branches and roots. In his mind, he was being chased by the owl. The Loud warlock kept up his evasive tactics until he couldn't keep up the pace, forcing him to land on a low hanging branch to catch his breath. He glanced around to see if he was safe, and couldn't see the pursuing owl. He sighed with relief...right before he got pinned to the branch by a powerful talon.

"Huh!? What!?" He gasped once the shock subsided.

"A free piece of advice, little squab-" The old owl said in a half sage, half condescendingly to the trapped bird. "-when being chased by a predator, those wasteful movements will simply get you eaten tired. Next time, simply find a space to hide too small for the predator in question to enter, like a hole in a tree...not that you can use this advice, of course."

"Arcanis!" Lincoln chanted as he struggled. However, nothing happened. Thinking maybe he needed to use his feet for the spell, he tried pointing his talons toward the owl. "Arcanis!" Still nothing happened. "Aerosa Elonta! Arcta Encassi! Infern!" He yelled out, trying every spell he could think of. However, nothing. He couldn't use his magic in this form.

"Are you attempting to convince me not to eat you because you are insane...because it is a pointless endeavor. I have eaten much worse," The old bird informed him with an exasperated sigh.

"Wait! I'm not a squab! I'm really a human!" The one son exclaimed.

"I know. I know."

"...you do? How do you know?" Lincoln asked in confusion.

"I can smell the scent of human all over you," He answered, tapping his beak with a wing feather. "And given the fact I know you weren't handled by a human in the brief time I hunted you, it seems safe to assume that you were indeed, once, human." He raised a wing to the middle Loud when he opened his beak. "I don't particularly care to know the whys, hows, or wherefores. It doesn't matter anyway. What does matter, however, is that you are, presently, a tasty little squab, and I am a hungry owl."

"What'd I ever do to you!?" The human turned snowbird asked, for no other reason than to keep the owl talking. After all, if his beak is flapping, he isn't eating him.

"Nothing at all. I assure you, this is nothing personal," The gray barn owl explained to him. "It is simply the law of nature. The larger, stronger predators -namely me- hunt and consume the smaller, weaker prey animals -IE you. The circle of life, and all that." Lincoln's eyes darted around for a moment until he saw a speck of purple in the sky above them. Was it Sibella? Well, one way to find out.

"...don't I at least get to say some last words?" The old owl sighed, facepalming with his wing.

"For goodness sakes...that is such a human notion...no one gets last words out in nature. It's just not done that way. I wouldn't even be talking with you normally...in fact-"

"-I'll just say them anyway. HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLP!" He screamed at the top of his little lungs, forcing his assailant to cover his ears (or the equivalent thereof for birds).

"Gah...was that really necessary!?" He asked indignantly. "I mean, just who do you think would come and rescue you? Another snowbird?" The nocturnal predator scoffed cruelly, just as he felt something smack him in the side of the head. It nearly knocked him off balance, He glared upwards to see who or what was responsible. Hovering a short distance over him, giving him a death glare, was Sibella. "What do you think you are doing!? This is my breakfast, and I know for a fact bats do not eat birds!"

"Unhand my boyfriend or face my wrath!" The vampiress threatened baring her fangs. The owl's eyes widened as he looked between Lincoln and the lavender bat before looking disgusted.

"That violates so many laws of nature…" He responded, looking quite sick. The purple bat dove at him again, forcing him to duck this time. "Now see here! If you do that even one more-" Once more, he had to lower his head again to evade her next strike. "That does it! I don't usually eat bats...but in your case, I will make an exception!" The furious raptor stuffed the little snowbird into a knothole in the tree trunk. "You have been relegated to the role of dessert. Wait right there. I shall return shortly." The old bird spread his wings just as Sibella flew off, flying right off after the vampiress.

Sibella was flying like a bolt of lightning back toward the barn, anger fueling her flight, while her pursuer flew high overhead, gliding after her. Like he had done with Lincoln, he was planning to let Sibella tired herself out before he struck. When he saw where she was gone, he smirked. "Well now...would you look at that? The little bat thinks she can hide in the barn. MY barn. Hehe. It is to laugh," He monologued with a chuckle as he watched her duck into the hay loft. "If she wishes to make it easier for me, then who am I to argue?" He dove downward and swooped right into the loft. However, when he entered the barn, he didn't see a purple bat, but a tall, lavender skinned vampiress standing there, hands on her hips, an icy frown on her face. The barn owl came to a sudden stop, coming to hover right in front of her. He looked the young lady up and down for a moment before he said to himself, "Hmmm. It would appear a serious error has been made…" The daughter of Dracula grabbed the owl by the neck and held him right up to her eyes.

"I want you to listen to me and listen good, you moldy old feather duster…" She hissed through her fangs to the shivering raptor. "...if I EVER catch you putting so much as a FEATHER on Lincoln ever again...I will pluck you bald, bring you to the kitchen at Grimwood's, and then have you fed to Miss Grimwood's plants! Am I understood!?"

"Gulp...quite understood…" The owl hooted weakly. "...I'm more of a mouse owl anyway…"

"Good," She said simply, releasing the predator from her grip before striding toward the entrance/exit to the loft, changing back into a bat.

* * *

Back with Lincoln, the one son was struggling to get himself out of the knot hole he had been stuck in. However, with his wings pinned to his sides and his legs on the inside, he wasn't going anywhere. To make matters worse of him, he could hear something climbing up the tree outside of his field of view. He prayed that it was a raccoon or something like that...only to discover it was a large black cat. She landed on the branch in front of him and looked at him with a big grin, like she was the Cheshire Cat. "Well well...what do we have here?" She asked in a soft, almost sultry voice.

"Please...don't eat me…" Lincoln pleaded fearfully.

"Never fear, young warlock," The cat said with a soft chuckle. "I don't intend to eat you. I don't even eat birds."

"Oh...whew…" He sighed with relief, before blinking. "Wait...how did you know I was a warlock?"

"Hehe. We familiars have a knack at spotting witches and warlocks," She explained as she reached a paw out and plucked the young man right out of the hole. "There we go."

"A familiar? You're a witch's cat?" He asked in amazement. He heard of familiars from Miss Grimwood; the magical pets of witches and warlocks, but he had never met one before.

"I am...or at least, I was. I'm Amethyst, by the way."

"Lincoln Loud. A pleasure to meet you," He said, holding a wing out to her.

"The pleasure is all mine," She answered, shaking his wing. "So, what exactly were you doing in there?"

"This big owl was saving me for dessert...he would have eaten me for breakfast, but...Sibella!" He suddenly exclaimed, looking in the direction of the barn. "Oh no...I hope she's ok…"

"Is that her?" Amethyst asked, gesturing a paw upward. His vampiric love had returned, now baring her fangs at the familiar below her.

"Sibella! Wait!" Lincoln called out, waving his wings at her. "It's ok! Amethyst isn't going to hurt me!"

"...she isn't?" She asked in return, looking at the cat with suspicion.

"Certainly not," His feline friend responded, smirking a bit as she stroked his head with her paw. "Along with the fact I don't eat birds, he's too cute to eat."

'Can't argue with that fact,' Sibella thought as her human love blushed a little. She came to land on the same branch they were on, still wary of the cat. "So what are you doing here?"

"Well, I was just hunting some rodents to eat when I felt a magical presence very close by."

"So, you are a familiar…" The vampiress commented with a look that was clearly measuring the cat up, just in case something turned foul.

"Mmhmm. Naturally, it drew me in like honey draws flies," Amethyst explained. "At first, I thought it was the owl, but I still felt it after he left, so I came up to investigate, and found Lincoln here."

"But why are you hunting all the way out here? Don't you have a witch or warlock to take care of you?" The one son asked.

"Sadly, no…" The feline familiar admitted, her ears dropping. "My original owner was caught during the Salem Witch Trials. She faked her own death at her execution and we lost track of each other for years. When I finally found her...let's just say time caught up with her…"

"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that, Amethyst," Lincoln said with sympathy, trying to scratch her behind the ears.

"Don't worry about it. It's, unfortunately, something that happens. Witches lose familiars, or familiars lose witches, leaving them to have to find new ones." The Loud warlock looked at the cat for a moment, stroking the underside of his beak with a wing feather. "I know what you're thinking, little warlock, and it's sweet of you to think of me, but I was a witch's familiar; therefore, I need to find a new witch."

"Do you?" Sibella asked with a raised eyebrow. This was the first she ever heard of this.

"Indeed. Unwritten rule of the familiar," The magical cat explained. "I don't make them, but I'm expected to follow them, no matter how stupid some of them are."

"Ok...though I have a sister who's a witch in training," Lincoln brought up, a little lightbulb appearing over his head as the notion came to him. "Perhaps she could take care of you?" Amethyst's eyes brightened immensely when she heard that.

"Do you think she would!?"

"We'd need to ask her, and Miss Grimwood too-"

"Miss Grimwood!? As in Abigail Grimwood!?" The familiar asked in amazement.

"Yeah, why?"

"Don't suppose a witch of her caliber needs a familiar, hmm?" She asked hopefully.

"I don't think so. She already has Matches and Legs, plus so many students to watch after," Sibella informed her, which saddened the witch's cat to hear.

"...ah well, it was worth a shot," Amethyst said with a sigh. "So, when would I get to meet your sister?"

"Do you know where Grimwood's school is?" The white feathered bird asked, to which the feline nodded. "Meet us there tomorrow afternoon, over by the volleyball court. We'll introduce you to Lucy there." He then had a distressing thought. He turned to the purple bat beside him. "Would Miss Grimwood's traps trigger on familiars?"

"I...don't know," Sibella admitted with a shrug. "I know animals are safe, but familiars aren't technically animals…"

"...perhaps we should meet over by the hedges between Old Calloway and Grimwood's," Lincoln amended as he turned back to Amethyst. "You can hang out on the old academy's side."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll meet you there," The black cat said before she climbed down the tree and skulked off to return to her hunt.

"Er...by the way, Lincoln…" The young vampiress said, suddenly looking a little nervous. "If Miss Grimwood asks, we met Amethyst right by the school, ok?" This earned her a quizzical look from her human boyfriend. "Technically...we aren't supposed to be out this far."

"Oh...well, don't worry, Sibella," He said with a shaky smile on his beak. "This secret is safe with me." The lovely vampiress smiled sweetly at him before giving him a soft kiss. It was then the one son reached under his left wing with his beak and pulled out a little blood red flower. Sibella gasped a bit in surprise, smiling even more as he set the flower in her hair.

"Oh, Lincoln…" She sighed happily as she pulled him into a hug and shared another kiss with him. "Come on. Let's go back to the barn and enjoy the view just a little longer, before lights out."

"Sounds great, but what about the owl?"

"We have an understanding. He won't be bothering us again," Sibella explained, taking the lead as she took to the air, the Loud warlock following shortly after.

* * *

The two of them spent about thirty more minutes atop the weather vane arrow, cuddling close together as they stargazed. It was a glorious evening, but they eventually needed to return to school. The bat gal and bird boy quietly flapped their way up to the gym tower window and, after a quick scout to make sure no one else was there, hopped right into the exercise room. "Did you enjoy our little flight, Lincoln?" The daughter of Dracula inquired as she changed back to her original form.

"Immensely, owl interruption aside," He replied, stretching his wings and legs a bit. "Thank you so much, Sibella. For everything."

"You're quite welcome, dearest," She responded, a glowing expression on her face. "Are you ready to be changed back?"

"Just a second." He hopped his way over to his pile of clothes on the floor, positioning himself pretty close to where he had been when he turned into a bit.

"Oh. Good thinking, Lincoln," The vampiress said, a soft blush appearing on her face before she held a hand over the bird in the pile. "Ellevan revoran trasorma humavis," she recited, a purple light shining from Lincoln's shirt. Seconds later, the white haired lad was returned to normal...with a slight hitch. When Lincoln changed back to normal, his shirt ended up over his head, one of his arms trapped with it, and his pants weren't quite up, giving Sibella a view of his underwear. Her cheeks turned a light pink before she burst out laughing at the silly sight before her. "Hahahahahahaha! I'm sorry, Lincoln...I know I shouldn't laugh…" She said through her hysterics, while Lincoln was trying to squirm his other arm free.

"It's...ok, Sibella," The muffled voice of Lincoln Loud said through his shirt, his face quite flushed from embarrassment. Once his fanged girlfriend had a few seconds to calm down, she walked over to help him straighten out his shirt. This gave him a chance to fix his jeans, then get to his feet. "Thank you…"

"Anytime," She said, gently stroking his hair with a loving smile. "We should go to bed. There's still a lot of work before finals."

"You're right, Sibella. I'll see you tomorrow. Good night," He said as he gave her a sweet kiss good night before the couple climbed down the stairs of the tower back to the second floor of the school. The one son was feeling somewhat more relaxed, in spite of the upcoming finals and his close encounter with a bird of prey. There was still a lot to think about, including Amethyst, but between the classes and the evening flight, he was definitely ready for a good night's sleep.


	17. Chapter 17: Things to come

_AN: A short chapter this time around. Once more, a few comments to reply to before we begin._

_Alexpv22: 1: One of my favorite Disney movies. Yeah, the scene in the gym tower was inspired by Sword in the Stone. The talking owl, however, was more there just for conflict._

_2 (Responding to DragonEmperor999 as well): Not sure if Lincoln will get a familiar, but if he does, I will consider it._

_3: Far from it. I know I haven't really explained how Miss Grimwood's school system works (heck, the movie itself was pretty vague about it, but it wasn't all that important there), but I'm having it work similarly to Hogwarts. Students usually study there for about eight years, usually graduating at 16 (give or take). Lincoln pretty much went in as a third year student as part of the exchange program, so he still has a ways to go before graduating. And before anyone asks why Miss Grimwood was teaching all the students of different years in the same classes. she's only one witch. There's only so much she can do._

_Ironchef: I have not seeing the latest episodes yet. A haunted car does get the gears turning, though. We'll see what happens._

_This chapter was requested by Josh._

_That's all from me for now. Enjoy the story._

* * *

Things to come

As Lincoln and Sibella had promised, after morning classes had ended the next day, they escorted Lucy down to the grounds. It was a bright sunny day and nearing summer, so it was quite warm as well. This meant the vampiress opted for a sun hat and the little goth had her umbrella out. The trio walked over to the hole in the hedge where they usually chatted with the Calloway Cadets, where Amethyst was sitting within the shade. "Amethyst?"

"Right here," The magical cat said with a small smile. Lucy stood on her toes to look into the yard next door. The familiar's ears twitched when she saw her, feeling her magical energy.

"Amethyst, allow me to introduce my little sister, Lucy. Lucy, Amethyst, the familiar I told you about," Lincoln said.

"Wicked," The goth girl commented with a bit of a smile. "Hello Amethyst."

"Hello Lucy," The talking feline responded politely.

"Lincoln tells me you're looking for a witch to take care of you?"

"Yes. Sadly, the witch I was originally bound to passed away of old age," Amethyst explained. "And as I was initially bound to a witch, I need to be bound to another witch."

"Old age? I didn't think that was possible for witches…" The witch in training said in her monotone.

"It's possible alright," Sibella informed her. "It may take much longer, hundreds of years in fact, but it can still happen."

"Well, I'd be happy to be your witch," The raven haired Loud said with a soft smile. "We just need to get permission from Miss Grimwood."

"That shouldn't be too hard, though," Lincoln said with a smile as the cat leapt into Lucy's arms. "Miss Grimwood is pretty agreeable."

* * *

"Absolutely not," Abigail said firmly with a shake of her head from behind her desk. The three students and one familiar were kind of taken aback by this outright refusal after they asked her.

'So much for agreeable…' Amethyst thought, her ears drooping a little.

"But why not?" Lucy inquired.

"It's not that I don't have sympathy for Miss Amethyst's situation, nor that I dislike cats or familiars. I love cats in general," She started, resting her arms on her desk. "However, a familiar and witch or warlock who are bound are capable of communicating through a special link. No words, and they don't even need to be in the same room. It makes it too easy to cheat on exams."

"...she has a point," The familiar admitted, looking downcast.

"And, unfortunately, I haven't found an effective method of countering this link."

"I hadn't realized that…" Lincoln said, stroking his chin with a finger as he thought.

"I'm not saying you can't keep her, you understand," The head mistress explained, which perked the cat right back up. "Just that she cannot stay here."

"...then maybe she could stay at our house," Lucy suggested. "I can go see her whenever I want, and she can come visit when there aren't classes or exams?" Miss Grimwood looked at the pale skinned little girl, pondering the suggestion for a moment.

"...I suppose that would be alright, if Amethyst has no objections."

"It sounds good to me," Amethyst answered.

"Just a fair warning," Lucy said, looking at the feline in her arms. "Our house can get pretty chaotic."

"Are you trying to scare me?" The familiar asked with a smirk. "I've been through the Salem witch hunts. I don't scare easily."

"Sounds like that's settled then," Miss Grimwood said with a small smile.

"Why don't you, Sibella and Amethyst head to the common room, Lincoln? I'll give our parents a call," Lucy said, handing the black cat to her brother. The white haired boy nodded to her, leaving her to make the necessary arrangements with their family.

* * *

A little bit later, most of the students from Grimwood were making themselves comfortable in the common room. Phanty was floating over the table Mark and Wendalyn were studying, doing some reading of her own. Elsa was sitting at a writing desk, looking over a crossword puzzle, tapping her cheek with her pencil. Winnie was playing a game of solitaire on another desk. Lincoln and Sibella were sitting in two of the easy chairs by the wall, Amethyst resting in Lincoln's lap and getting a lot of attention from Tanis, Gila and Gosuki.

"She's so cute," Gila commented with a smile as she scratched the familiar behind the ears.

"It's a shame she can't stay here…" The pink kaiju added.

"Well, Miss Grimwood does have a good reason for it," The magical feline admitted, enjoying the attention she was getting. "And it's not like I can't visit when class isn't in session."

"Yeah. That's true." It was around this time the pale little Loud had entered the common room, a small smile on her face.

"Mom and Dad say it's alright, as long as I help take care of her, which was my plan from the start," she informed her brother and classmates.

"That's great news," Amethyst said with a smile. "...but no one said I had to leave right away, right?"

"Of course not. I told them we'd be by later, before our last class of the day."

"So, what was it you were saying, Sibella? About lessons in divination?" Lincoln asked, turning his attention back to his lavender skinned love.

"Ah yes. I was saying Mr Van Ghoul and Miss Grimwood would probably cover spells that allow the caster to see or hear over great distances, magical eavesdropping, surveillance, that kind of stuff. But not the future viewing spells."

"Hmm? Why not?" Lucy asked, tilting her head.

"Magically seeing into the future isn't something that can be taught," The vampiress explained. "It's a rare gift. You either have it or you don't, and all the lessons in the world won't help if you don't have it."

"And as near as any of us can tell, none of us have the gift," Tanis added in.

"I personally feel it doesn't exist," Elsa commented, turning away from her puzzle. Both Lincoln and Lucy looked at her with surprise.

"Really, Elsa? With all the things you've seen and heard?" Lucy inquired.

"We all have places where we draw the line, and fortune telling and the like is where I draw the line," The reanimated teen explained with a shrug.

"...I have seen the future before," The goth said, getting everyone's attention.

"You have?" Phanty asked, setting her book down below her.

"Really?" Tanis inquired in awe.

"She kinda has," her brother confirmed. "She's used tarot cards and her crystal ball to predict the future...vaguely, but with incredible accuracy."

"Tarot cards aren't really the same thing...though if that's true, it's a possible sign," The daughter of Dracula said, looking at Lucy with a pensive expression.

"No offense, Lucy, but I'll believe it when I see it," Elsa commented.

"None taken, and I'd be happy to prove it. Just let me get my crystal ball from my room," Lucy said, turning on her heel to walk out of the room.

"...Did...I offend her?" The daughter of Frankenteen asked, her tone quite worried.

"I don't think so," Lincoln answered while shaking his head. "She's used to skeptics."

"It's just hard to tell with her…"

"I know. I'm her brother and even I have trouble figuring it out sometimes."

* * *

A few minutes later, the eight year old goth had returned with her glass orb. She set it down on the other table before sitting behind it. The others in the room moved closer to her, so they could look into the ball. "Ok. What would you like to know about the future?" Things go a little silent there. No one really had an answer prepared. However, after a few seconds, Phanty spoke up with a big smile.

"Oh! I know! How about you look into the future of Linky, Sibella, Ronnie Anne, and I?" She offered, looking excited at the prospect. Lucy turned to Lincoln and Sibella, to get their oks on this idea.

"That sounds like a fang-tastic idea," Sibella agreed, while Lincoln just nodded.

"Very well." The raven haired little girl started to wave her hands over the crystal ball, humming to herself as she worked. Elsa had her arms crossed as she waited; she was skeptical, of course, but intrigued at the same time. After nearly a minute of nothing, the ball started to fill with mist. All eyes were on the sphere as an image started to appear in the mist. It looked like...Sibella. She was laying in a basin filled with bright scarlet bubbles, a blissful look on her face as an older Lincoln was giving her a foot rub. Lincoln and Sibella both blushed, but the vampiress was grinning at him.

"Lincoln, you're so bold in the future," She said, making him blush a little more and making Phanty and Winnie giggle.

"Oh, wait…" Lucy said, a mischievous grin on her face. "This is just next Tuesday." Lincoln's face turned beet red as he went still as a statue. Winnie was outright laughing now at the expression on Lincoln's face, while Wendy joined Phantasma in giggling. The long haired vampiress looked quite surprised at first, but then started chortling herself when she saw Lincoln's blush. "Relax, Lincoln. I was just kidding…" His little sister informed him in her monotone. However, he didn't relax at all. "Lincoln…?"

"Oh dear...I think you broke him…" Suki said with worry, giving the one son a gentle shake.

"Hehehe. Don't worry, Suki. I can fix this," The giggly ghost said. She turned to her stiff as a board beau and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. A second or two after their lips touched, he snapped out of his daze.

"Huh? What happened?"

"Lucy pulled a little joke on you," Winnie said as she calmed down.

"Sorry, big brother…" Lucy said apologetically.

"...don't worry about it, Luce," Her brother told her with a slight smile. Lucy gave a light smile as well before returning her attention to the ball.

'Well, technically, it is next Tuesday...a few years from now,' She thought to herself before she said, "Let's see if I can get a little further into the future…" The little goth focused hard on the orb as the mist consumed the image. After a couple seconds, the light fog split, showing an adult Lincoln sitting over a writing desk, a bunch of papers all over it. Her fellow Grimwood student leaned in closer to try and see what was going on.

* * *

Lincoln tapped his fingers against the surface of the desk, his tongue sticking out as he thought. In front of him was a sketch half drawn action scene. This was how he operated: sketching a scene on paper, then drawing it again on his drawing tablet. Also on the desk were papers covered in runes and strange writing. Even after graduating from Grimwood's school and getting into art school, he continued his study of magic. In addition, he had paper upon paper on state and US law; laws behind polyamorous marriage. Safe to say he was kept very busy. He was just considering taking a break when a purple bat flew in from the night outside, through an open window. The one son smiled as he turned around in time to witness the bat turn back into Sibella Dracula. When they were both in school, Lincoln always found her beautiful. Now, he found her positively ravishing. She was still a couple inches taller than him, and had a very voluptuous figure. She was wearing a dark, blood red business suit and her usually long hair was done up in a bun. She smiled at her human love as soon as she noticed him.

"Good evening, Lincoln," she greeted him.

"Good evening, Sibella," he responded, rising from his chair. "How was work?"

"Oh, you know how it is. So much drama in the office," she said with an eye roll and a chuckle. "Paul and Zorlin arguing over desk placement, Orina objecting to her not getting a promotion, Jennifer still not wanting a vampire on staff…"

"Really…?" The white haired man sighed. "Some people…"

"Well, if it's any consolation, I find her attempts to get Mr Daniels to get rid of me amusing." She giggled softly before she pulled a few bobby pins from her hair, letting it drape down to her feet once more. She swished it around a little before nodding. "Much better."

"Hehe. I love it when you do that," He said with a chuckle.

"Oh really?" She replied with a grin, twirling a bit and sweeping her hair so it brushed across his face. He could smell her special shampoo (which smelled of blood oranges), which left him in a kind of daze and a dopey, love struck grin on his face. "Tee hee. Twelve years later, and I still have that effect on you." The middle Loud snapped out of his momentary stupor, chuckling and blushing a bit. "Apart from that, it was a pretty boring day at the office. Not many calls today, but that's kind of a good thing. Means fewer folks affected by curses and hexes. But enough about me. How was your day, darling?"

"It was alright. I was pretty productive today; drawing the climax of my latest comic commission, did some runic studies, finally got around to vacuuming the living room and dining room."

"But didn't straighten out your office, it seems," She teased him as she looked around the room. Apart from the messy writing desk, there was also a computer desk against the wall to the right, where Lincoln kept his digital drawing stuff. It was also littered with papers. There were crumpled up papers on the floor around an overfilled trash can, and a stack of foam coffee cups beside it. Beside the one door in and out were two book shelves, filled with books, save for a few blank spots. The books that were supposed to go in them were stacked by Lincoln's chair.

"Yeah, I've been busy," He responded, rubbing the back of his head. The daughter of Dracula picked up one of the papers, uncrumpled it and looked it over. It looked to be a list of states, but all of them were crossed off.

"Still working hard on this, Lincoln?" The white haired man nodded and sighed dishearteningly.

"It has been a challenge, trying to find a place where we can all get married...we can put a man on the moon, connect people all over the world electronically and build supercomputers that can fit in the palm of your hand, but we can't accommodate for polyamorous marriage…"

"We'll find a way," She told him, giving a tender kiss on the cheek. "Why don't you take a little rest, my love? By the look of it, you earned it."

"You read my mind, beautiful," The Loud warlock responded with a smirk. "I'll clean up the office before bed." The vampiress nodded, taking his hand as they stepped into the upstairs hall of their home. The moment they stepped out of the office, Ronnie Anne had emerged from the bathroom a few doors down, in a magenta robe and her hair wrapped up in a towel. She was a little shorter than Lincoln, but what she lacked in height, she made up for in muscle and in hips. She looked up the corridor and smiled.

"Hey Sib, hey hermoso."

"Evening, Ronnie," Sibella responded cheerfully.

"Hello Ronnie Anne," Lincoln said, walking over to give her a hug and kiss. "Just got home from work?"

"Yep. Just getting a shower in before bed."

"Sounds nice. I'll probably get one of my own soon." The vampiress glanced toward Lincoln with a grin. "Maybe you can join me, dearest?"

"Hehe. Maybe so," The one son replied with a chuckle and a blush.

"You two keep that up, I might just get jealous," RA joked, both she and Sibella giggling.

"So here's where the party is!" Chirped the daughter of the phantom as she phased through the floor. She was easily the tallest and leanest out of the four. She was wearing a small, pale blue, torn t shirt that didn't cover her stomach and black yoga pants, as well as a pair of headphones on her head. Her sudden appearance made the tough latina jump.

"Gah!" She gasped in shock. "...I don't think I'll ever get used to that," she added, making Phanty giggle.

"How's the recording going, Phanty?" The one son inquired.

"Wonderfully, Linky," she replied with great cheer. "Should be ready to release my next album by the end of the month."

"That's fang-tastic news, Phantasma."

"Bet it'll be a hit, like your last one," The comic enthusiast said with a smile.

"Tee hee. It wasn't THAT good," Phantasma replied with a blush.

"Almost a million downloads would suggest otherwise," Ronnie Anne interjected before yawning lightly. "Anyway, I'm gonna hit the sack. See most of you in the morning."

"Sleep well, maravillosa," Lincoln told her.

"You too, Linc," she replied with a loving smile before she departed for their room. With the bathroom now open, the vampiress took this as the opportunity to get her shower. She gave her human boyfriend a quick, sly wink before she sashayed off to their room to get what she needed.

"Just can't keep your eyes off her, eh?" The see through woman teased, nudging him in the ribs.

"Can't keep my eyes off all of you," He corrected her, pulling her into a one armed hug, making her laugh softly.

"Your hands either. Hehehehehe," she added before planting a big smooch on him. "So, how is your project coming along?"

"I should be finished with the commission soon, then I'll probably work on my own comic a little more," He said. "Just needs to be digitally drawn, inked and painted before I send it to get the text put in."

"Sounds like a lot of work, and you know what they say...all work and no play makes Linc a dull boy," Phanty said as she rubbed noses with him. "And if memory serves, it's my turn tonight~"

"Hehe. You're right, though our bedroom will be a little crowded, and we won't want to wake up Ronnie Anne. You know how she doesn't like being woken up."

"Oh! Good point. It's sound proofed down in my studio, though. Meet you there?"

"I'll meet you there in a bit," He told her before he kissed her and let her go. She floated back down through the floor, giggling in anticipation.

* * *

"What do you suppose they mean by that?" Winnie asked, her head slightly tilted.

"I probably have some games in mind we can play," Phantasma replied innocently, smiling widely. It was then Future Lincoln turned right to the fourth wall, almost like he was looking right at them all, making them all flinch in surprise.

"Sorry, guys," He said as he raised his hand. "I know you're all curious, but it's not good to know too much about your own futures. Purgoris survanor," He chanted, his hand glowing with a bright light. As he was casting the spell, another door opened behind him. They couldn't see who exactly was there, but they could see a fairly feminine figure just before the future feed cut off.

"Did...did he just cut us off!?" Winnie asked in shock.

"He knew we were watching?" Lucy seemed positively dumbstruck by this. "Is that possible?"

"Well, if that is me in the future…" Lincoln started. "He would know we would be looking into the future about now, so…"

"Oh yeah…"

"Still, it looks like we're all doing alright in the future," The white haired boy said with a smile, looking to Sibella and Phantasma, who nodded in agreement.

"I hate to be the wet blanket on this, but that was just a possible future," Lucy said, sounding like she didn't want to say that. "Granted, it is a very possible future, given Future Lincoln's reaction."

"Yeah, we know, Lucy," Sibella responded, her spirits still strong. "But it is still a promising possibility."

"True. True."

"There's one thing kinda bothering me, though," Wendalyn spoke up, looking like she was trying to solve an especially tricky puzzle. "Who was that coming out of the door just before Future Lincoln cut us off?"

"Good question. I didn't get a good look. Did any of you?" Lucy looked to everyone there, who just shrugged in response. All except Sibella.

'I have a little theory…' She thought to herself with a satisfied grin. '...and if it's who I think it is, then I say good for her. She finally worked up the nerve.'

"So, what do you think now, Elsa?" Winnie inquired with a cheeky smirk, leaning against the table.

"Well, I can't say I believe in fortune telling any more than before...but I cannot deny what we saw certainly looked like something from the future," The daughter of Frankenteen admitted.

"It certainly looks like Lucy may have the gift," Tanis commented.

"Indeed. Perhaps you should see Miss Grimwood sometime, to see if she can confirm it," Sibella suggested, giving the little goth a smile.

"I shall. I'd love to know if I really have clairvoyance." Meanwhile, outside of the common room, there was someone listening in on their conversation. Avalina had every intention of relaxing in the common room, maybe listening to the radio, but when she heard Lincoln's voice, she hesitated. It was about then she heard them talking about divining the future, and even heard what they saw in the crystal ball. To say this was giving her some ideas would be an understatement.

"Well well…" She muttered to herself with a mischievous smirk. "...I think I'm feeling particularly gifted myself." She hastily slithered away from the door, just in case anyone made a move to leave. Besides, she had some planning to do.

* * *

_AN: Just as a quick question before you click out of this story: Would anyone be interested in seeing a spin off story of Lincoln and his many loves as adults? Not saying I have anything planned for it, or that it would happen anytime soon. However, I'm curious to see how much interest there would be for it._


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